Chamber and committees

Research indicates that the major proportion of children who are not registered with a dentist live in the most deprived areas and that dental attendance is poor among pre-school children. The Executive is committed to improving the dental health of these children.

On a national basis, and in addition to continuing dental health promotion initiatives, the early years enhanced capitation scheme has been introduced to pay dentists enhanced monthly capitation fees for registering 0-2 year old children on the NHS, with the level of fee paid linked to the category of deprivation of the area where the child lives. Enhanced capitation fees are also paid to dentists registering 3-5 year olds in the lowest deprivation categories. The Executive also plans to introduce enhanced capitation payments for registering and fissure sealing the first molars of 6-8 year olds in the most deprived areas.

A number of local schemes are in place in Scotland, mainly involving health visitors, which seek to encourage mothers to register their babies and toddlers on the NHS with a dentist. Health education programmes with nurseries, playgroups and schools are also underway to encourage registration and attendance. In addition, school screening by the community dental service has been extended to nurseries to identify oral disease and encourage registration.

As I said in Parliament on 21 September, a wide-ranging document on children's oral health will be issued in the New Year. It will describe what the Executive is currently doing and seek views on what further measures might be taken. It will also seek views on fluoridation of public water supplies as well as other options such as fluoride tablets and fluoridated drinks.

All NHS patients should be given information and support to ensure they are fully involved in decisions about their own care. The Executive has been taking forward a number of initiatives to foster a better understanding of this requirement within the NHS. While these have not been aimed specifically at dental care, the principles are equally applicable.

Under current Regulations, a dentist is already required to provide a patient registered with him or her on the NHS with a plan outlining such details as the NHS care and treatment considered necessary and an estimate of the associated patient charge. Dentists must also display information about NHS dental charges approved by the Primary Care NHS Trust or island health board and make available patient information leaflets listing the dentists working in the practice(s) and other helpful information such as opening hours and access for those patients in wheelchairs. In addition, dentists must inform their NHS patients about the practice-based complaints procedure which he or she operates.

The Executive also provides a free telephone information service, the NHS Helpline, which is able to provide callers with information on the availability of NHS dentists and dental treatments.

Consultants in Dental Public Health and Health Promotion Departments in health boards and Directors of Community Dental Services in Primary Care NHS Trusts liaise on strategic dental and oral health care issues with education authorities. At operational level, community dentists and dental health educators employed within the community dental service collaborate with general medical practitioners, general dental practitioners, health visitors, community dieticians and teachers on oral health promotion programmes, including dental health education, and on dental public health programmes, such as toothbrushing initiatives. The target groups for such programmes include children in schools, nurseries, playgroups, the parents of these children, pregnant women and nursing mothers.

The Common Services Agency's Fraud Investigation Unit began operations in July of this year.

The Scottish Executive's drive to improve the diet of young people is being taken forward in line with the Scottish Diet Action Plan, "Eating for Health". A wide variety of action is underway at both national and local level, ranging from healthy eating campaigns targeting the young by the Health Education Board for Scotland, health boards and schools, through to community food initiatives, School Nutrition Action Groups, cooking skills courses and healthy eating vending machines within schools. Encouragingly, and also noted in the Chief Medical Officer's Report, there have been significant increases in young people's consumption of fruit, vegetables, salads, low fat milk, pasta and rice.

The reported increase in consumption of chips, sweets and fatty foods is, however, clearly a matter for concern. The Executive is, therefore, continuing to give priority to the encouragement of healthier food choices by young people. New initiatives are being introduced, such as extension of breakfast clubs and fruit and salad bars in schools and provision of fruit for infants - all supported by the recently announced £26 million Health Improvement Fund. The forthcoming appointment of a national diet action co-ordinator whose responsibilities will include working closely with those interests exercising a major influence on young people's diet, will also make an important contribution.

The Scottish Executive provides funds to the Scottish Road Safety Campaign for the development of road safety educational materials and publicity initiatives. The campaign organises national road safety education initiatives and publicity campaigns as well as providing education and publicity materials to road safety units throughout Scotland, including Highland. These materials will be available for use in support of the campaign by Highland Health Board, Highland Council and Northern Constabulary.

The Children (Scotland) Act 1995 provides for a range of measures which, if used appropriately and timeously, should protect children who are known to be at risk of harm from their parents or guardians.

The Scottish Executive is taking forward a range of measures which seek to reduce the levels of smoking by young people in Scotland. Although aimed at young people generally, aspects relating specifically to girls are addressed. The measures include health education and promotion activities such as Smokeline (pregnant young women are a priority group), the "blue sticks" TV commercial which has a strong female bias; materials for primary and secondary pupils; targeted smoking cessation services and a new enforcement package to target under age sales of tobacco. Moreover, an element of the £26 million health promotion fund which I announced on 20 August will be used for a major education drive to cut teenage smoking. We intend that this will take account of the differences between girls and boys smoking and be targeted accordingly.

I hope to be in a position to publish the report "Hepatitis C and the Heat Treatment of Blood Products for Haemophiliacs in the mid-1980s" very shortly.