Chamber and committees

Information on the cost to each Local Authority of conducting financial assessments for social care services for people over 65 is not held centrally.

The Scottish Government having discussed the situation with NHS Lothian understand the Board's decision to delay opening of the new hospital.

Their decision has been made in order to protect the commissioning period to ensure that the new facility is fully safe and ready to accept patients and staff. This follows their recent review of construction progress and quality. During any commissioning period there are significant works to carry out such as fully equipping the hospital, staff recruitment familiarisation and induction, snagging where required, testing of equipment and facilities and adequately stocking of the hospital. The Board wish to ensure a smooth transition of their clinical teams to the new facility reducing any risk to patient and staff safety.

The Scottish Government will be working closely with the Board to ensure that no further delays arise and agree with the Board's decision at this point in time not to set a definite specific revised date for opening. NHS Lothian will be closely monitoring the situation over the next few weeks and once they have certainty, will release a new opening date.

This information is not held centrally, it is a matter for individual Health Boards.

The Scottish Government published a respiratory prescribing strategy in 2014. Work is underway to develop an updated version. This is being led by officials and colleagues from NHS Scotland. It is intended that the strategy be published later in 2017.

The Effective Prescribing Programme was established by NHS National Services Scotland, NHS Boards and the Scottish Government to facilitate and support the quality of prescribing and medicines use. The following are the current areas of focus:

• Implementation of Prescribing Strategies

• Effective use of biological medicines

• Clinical consensus to guide best practice in prescribing in particular clinical areas

• Effective use of prescribing support tools

• Effective use of liothyronine

Future areas have yet to be considered and agreed.

Registration arrangements at GP practices in Scotland are based on national regulations.

The regulations are clear that either parent can apply for registration on behalf of a child. There is nothing in the regulations to say that it has to be the child's mother, rather than the father. The regulations also allow for a non-parental guardian to be able to register a child.

The information that is available is given in the following table. This was produced from a National Records of Scotland (NRS) database which covers all the drug poisoning deaths that are counted by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) “wide” definition. Figures for 1999 are not available because 2000 is the first year for which that database holds information.

The following are among the opioids (including opiates), or compounds containing opioids, most often reported as being involved in deaths registered in Scotland from 2000: buprenorphine, co-codamol, co-proxamol, codeine, dextropropoxyphene, diamorphine, dihydrocodeine, heroin, methadone, morphine, oxycodone, propoxyphene and tramadol.

The table distinguishes between deaths for which only opioids were reported (e.g. deaths for which the cause was given as “heroin toxicity” or “heroin, methadone and dihydrocodeine intoxication”), and deaths for which both opioids and one or more other types of drug were reported (e.g. deaths for which the cause was given as “adverse effects of heroin, pregabalin, tramadol, diazepam and etizolam” or “etizolam, gabapentin, amitriptyline and codeine intoxication”).

For each year, the table shows more deaths than the “Any opiate or opioid” column in Table 3 of “Drug-related Deaths in Scotland in 2016” (which was published by NRS on 15 August 2017). This is because some of the ONS “wide” definition deaths for which opioids were reported are not counted as “drug-related” for the purpose of NRS’s statistics: for example, deaths due solely to co-codamol, co-proxamol, dextropropoxyphene, or tramadol before it was controlled under the Misuse of Drugs Act. More on this is available in “Drug-related Deaths in Scotland in 2016” (e.g. paragraphs A3 of Annex A and F5 of Annex F).

Drug poisoning deaths (ONS “wide” definition) registered in Scotland for which one or more opioids (including opiates) were reported*, 2000 to 2016

* the basis of these figures and why there is a break in the series are explained in the paragraph which follows.

There is a break in the series between 2007 and 2008. This is due to the revision of the form on which pathologists provide NRS with more complete information about the substances that were present in a body:

• up to 2007, the form asked for the “principal drug or solvent found in a fatal dose” and “any other drugs or solvents involved in this death”, and the figures are based on all the substances which the pathologists reported;

• from 2008, the form asks for the drugs or solvents (a) “…implicated in, or which potentially contributed to, the cause of death” and (b) “… any other[s] which were present, but which were not considered to have had any direct contribution to this death”, and the figures cover only substances which the pathologists reported under (a), which is the standard basis for NRS’s figures for drugs reported for 2008 onwards.

More information about these matters is available in “Drug-related Deaths in Scotland in 2016” (e.g. paragraphs 2.3 to 2.5).

Registration arrangements at GP practices in Scotland regarding who can register a baby or child are based on national regulations. (GMS Schedule 5, Part 2, Regulation 15).

The regulations state that an application for registration with a GP practice may be made on behalf of any child:

• by either parent, or in the absence of both parents, the guardian or other adult person who has care of the child,

• by a person duly authorised by a local authority, where the child is in the care of a local authority under the Children (Scotland) Act 1995(1); or

• by a person duly authorised by a voluntary organisation, by which the child is being accommodated under the provisions of that Act.

Generally GPs should not refuse a person registration unless there are exceptional circumstances. According to the national regulations either parent can apply for registration on behalf of a child. The regulations also allow for a non-parental guardian to be able to register a child.

One possibility where a parent (either mother or father) would not be allowed to register a child with a GP practice is if the child lived outwith the practice area (i.e. they are living with the other parent or another guardian). This would be reasonable grounds for refusal under the regulations.

It is also possible that in certain circumstances i.e. a custody dispute, a court could make an order prohibiting one parent from registering the child, or an order saying where the child should be registered.

This information is not held centrally, it is a matter for individual Health Boards.