Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-23503.

This initiative did not specify the provision of a hands-free mobile set. The numbers of phones issued was given in my answer to question S1W-12041 on 4 January 2002.

The Older People's Consultative Forum forms part of the Executive's wider strategy for involving older people. The main criterion for determining membership was that it should comprise older people themselves. Following consultations, national organisations which represent the interests of many older people's groups across Scotland were invited to nominate members.

As Our National Health: A plan for action, a plan for change acknowledged, people who live and cope with chronic disease or long-term disability acquire a great deal of expertise and insight about their condition. Innovative Scottish programmes, such as Allies in Change and Partners in Policymaking, have shown that the expertise of patients can be put at the heart of service redesign. When these "expert patients" and health care professionals come together to plan and develop services, strong partnerships are created which lead to positive change in service culture and practice. Change that can only come about because of the depth of understanding which patients and users of services bring to the process.We are building on the approach successfully demonstrated by these programmes by requiring every NHS board to set up at least one Partners in Change programme by April 2002. People with long-term health conditions are now involved in preparatory work on over 80 local Partners in Change programmes. Among these local schemes are some where people teach others with that condition how to manage it, in others patients provide training for staff on the benefits of self-management, or work with staff to plan a redesigned service. This work is confirming that people want support and recognition for the key role of those who support them, often their own family, or neighbours, helped by their GP practice. It is supporting the NHS adopt a "whole person" approach that supports the people it serves across the span of their needs.There are also well organised, well-informed support groups for most chronic conditions. These groups possess a powerful and valuable insight into the spectrum of needs of people with enduring health problems. We are taking steps to ensure that these support groups are closely involved in service redesign and delivery at both a local and national level. Patient Focus and Public Involvement, published in December of last year, reported on how this, and other work identified in the Involving People section of Our National Health, will be developed over the coming three years. Harnessing the expertise of patients is key to creating a patient-focussed NHS that exists for the patient and is designed to meet the needs and wishes of the individual receiving care and treatment.

The following figures are derived from the Prescription Cost Analysis system. They give the cost of NHS prescriptions for drugs and devices to treat asthma in sections 3.1, 3.2 and 3.3 of the British National Formulary in the last five years for which figures are available. The cost is the cost of ingredients before deduction of discount and patient charges and addition of dispensing fees.

Year	Cost (£)
1996-97	50,892,763
1997-98	55,263,570
1998-99	58,545,599
1999-2000	61,318,783
2000-01	63,644,056

These data refer to prescriptions dispensed in the community and do not take into account any items dispensed by hospitals or hospital based clinics.

The guidance on the Administration of Medicines in Schools emphasises that it is for NHS boards to ensure that appropriate agreements are in place with education authorities in relation to the administration of medicines in schools. The guidance was issued to NHS boards and education authorities approximately five months ago and the Scottish Executive plans to make enquiries on the progress that has been made at the sixth month point.

The following figures are derived from the Prescription Cost Analysis system. They give the value of prescription charges collected for drugs and devices to treat asthma in sections 3.1, 3.2 and 3.3 of the British National Formulary in the last five years for which figures are available.

Year	Prescription Charges Collected (£)
1996-97	1,914,303
1997-98	2,113,371
1998-99	2,341,077
1999-2000	2,739,813
2000-01	2,828,598

These data refer to prescriptions dispensed in the community and do not take into account any items dispensed by hospitals or hospital based clinics.

The following table shows the number of beds per 1,000 population in each health board area in 1999. It is not meaningful to make comparisons between individual boards, because these figures do not take account of differences in the underlying healthcare needs of the population living in different health board areas, nor do they take account of the extent to which hospitals in one area may treat patients from neighbouring health board areas.Table 1NHSiS - Average available staffed beds¹; by health board of treatment; Year ending 31 December 1999, rate per 1,000 population

	Acute Specialties2	Acute Surgical Specialties
Scotland	3.3	1.3
Argyll & Clyde	3.1	1.1
Ayrshire & Arran	2.9	1.1
Borders	2.6	1.0
Dumfries & Galloway	2.6	1.1
Fife	2.3	0.8
Forth Valley	2.7	1.1
Grampian	3.2	1.4
Greater Glasgow	4.5	1.8
Highland	3.7	1.5
Lanarkshire	2.9	1.2
Lothian	3.2	1.1
Orkney	1.2	1.2
Shetland	2.6	1.1
Tayside	3.9	1.5
Western Isles	4.9	1.5

Notes: 1. Includes NHS beds in joint-user and contractual hospitals.2. Includes acute surgical, acute medical beds and geriatric medicine excluding long stay.

The following table lists the average cost of a prescription item for each category for the last five years:Generic

Year	Average cost per item (£)
2000-01	10.64
1999-2000	9.50
1998-99	8.22
1997-98	7.76
1996-97	6.88

Branded

Year	Average cost per item (£)
2000-01	14.29
1999-2000	13.27
1998-99	12.77
1997-98	12.22
1996-97	11.78

Homeopathic

Year	Average cost per item (£)
2000-01	3.68
1999-2000	3.49
1998-98	3.29
1997-98	2.97
1996-97	2.85

These data refer to NHS prescriptions dispensed in the community and do not take into account any items dispensed by hospitals or hospital based clinics.

The following table lists the number of NHS prescriptions dispensed in the community in each of the last five years:

Year	Number of Prescriptions
1996-97	46,904
1997-98	49,556
1998-99	51,486
1999-2000	54,310
2000-01	52,889