Chamber and committees

I refer the member to my statement in Parliament on 19 March 2019, which announced that the Scottish Government will undertake a review of the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003. Along with ongoing work on incapacity and adult support and protection legislation, this overarching review will examine the full legislative framework that supports and protects people with a mental disorder: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/report.aspx?r=12006&i=108613

The new NHS Complaints Handling Procedure (CHP) was introduced across Scotland from 1 April 2017. The revised procedure is intended to support a more consistently person-centred approach to complaints handling across NHS Scotland. It brings a much sharper focus to the early, local resolution of complaints, wherever that’s appropriate, and brought the NHS into line with other public service sectors by introducing a distinct, five working day stage for early, local resolution, ahead of the 20 working day stage for complaint investigations. When that is not possible the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) is the second and final stage in the complaints process.

When a person has concerns about NHS treatment or care this should be addressed at a local level through the NHS Complaints Handling Procedure (CHP). The Patient Rights (Scotland) Act 2011 and supporting legislation, provides a specific right for people to make complaints, raise concerns, make comments and give feedback to NHS Boards. The Act also places a duty on NHS Boards to thoroughly investigate and respond to any concerns raised, to take improvement actions where appropriate and to share learning from the views they receive. Where an individual remains dissatisfied with the outcome of the CHP investigation, the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) is the second and final stage in the complaints process.

The number of Scottish domiciled entrants to study medicine at a Scottish HEI in each year since 1999 is shown in the following table.

Scottish domiciled entrants to medicine:

(a)Additional Support Needs (ASN) Teachers - Full Time Equivalents

The following table sets out the full time equivalent of additional support for learning teachers in each authority in 2018.

This includes teachers with their main subject recorded as: Learning Support Secondary; Learning Support, Primary; Special Educational Needs (SEN) (primary) non-recorded pupils; SEN (recorded pupils); SEN (Secondary) non-recorded pupils; SEN Behavioural Support; SEN Learning Difficulties; SEN Physical Disabilities; Hearing Impairment; Visual Impairment; or English as an Additional Language (EAL). Teachers from all sectors, primary, secondary, special schools and centrally employed, are included. Teachers in grant-aided schools are not included.

To date no funding has been directly invested in the private sector. However, we have provided almost £26.7 million to territorial NHS Boards and the Golden Jubilee National Hospital during 2018-19 to support a range of actions and to put in place additional capacity aimed at reducing waiting lists. NHS Boards will utilise some of this funding to secure capacity through the private sector while we build sustainable solutions over the next two years.

Over the next 12 months we will pursue use of the independent sector in a structured and prioritised manner developing a National Contract, based on clinical priorities and as set out in the Waiting Times Improvement Plan I published in October 2018. Further investment will be allocated in 2019-20 to support the national contract.

Since 2016 a total of £6 million funding has been released directly to NHS Boards from this diagnostics fund. NHS boards have directed this funding to support additional scope and imaging capacity based on local need and demand. In 2018-19 alone, this £2m fund will have supported provision of an additional 560 endoscopy sessions, 950 additional one stop breast appointments and 2,000 additional scans across NHSScotland for suspected cancer patients and progress is monitored through regular Scottish Government performance meetings.

Average per-pupil spending on additional support for learning in Scotland was £3,393 in 2017-18. Data detailing spending on additional support for learning is collected from local authorities via the Local Financial Returns (LFR). This figure shows gross revenue expenditure on additional support for learning in primary, secondary and special education from the local financial returns (£621,436, as provided in S5W-15037 on 15 March 2018), divided by the number of pupils identified as having additional support needs recorded in the 2017 Pupil Census (http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/Browse/School-Education/dspupcensus).

As highlighted in the answer to questions S5W-21804 there are issues around the quality of this data. This means that accurate comparisons between local authorities and between years cannot be made. A lack of consistency in how local authorities have broken down the information to primary, secondary and special categories means that this data does not consistently represent the levels of spending in different categories of schools in local authorities. This data also cannot capture the full detail of the support provided to pupils, as a result of provision made for the whole pupil population, from which children and young people with additional support needs also benefit.

We recognise the challenge facing authorities and that decisions about prioritisation and budgets, including those for the provision of services for pupils with additional support needs, are a matter for individual councils, balancing their need to meet a wide range of statutory duties, local priorities and local circumstances. Local Government Financial Statistics for 2017-18 showed that local authorities spent £628 million was spent on additional support for learning – increasing from £610 million in 2016-17 – a 0.9% increase in real terms (2.9% in cash terms).

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

Recording only began for cancelled operations in May 2015. The following table displays the total number of scheduled elective cancelled operations recorded in theatre systems for calendar years 2016, 2017 and 2018 across NHSScotland.

As set out in the Scottish Trauma Network’s National Implementation Plan, the chosen model for trauma care in Scotland involves four Major Trauma Centres (MTCs). The first two of these were opened in the North (Aberdeen) in October 2018 and in the East (Dundee) in November 2018. It is expected the MTCs in the South East and the West will open as set out in the Implementation Plan.

A table on the number of nursing and midwifery vacancies for staff working in NHSScotland from 2007 onwards has been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre- Bib reference number 60524

The number of nursing and midwifery vacancies for staff working in NHSScotland as at 1999-2005 is available on the ISD website historic tables: Nursing and midwifery vacancies by level of qualification and specialty - total vacancies - trend

Please note: The information in these tables should be treated with caution. The non-submission of data is not thought to have a major impact on the vacancy rates shown but the underlying vacancy and establishment numbers will be undercounts of the real total. Figures from 2003 (shaded in the table) are considered to be the most reliable.

The information requested on nursing and midwifery vacancies for staff working in NHScotland for 2006 is not centrally available.