Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-27726

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 May 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 3 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to investigate any reasons for the standardised mortality ratio reportedly being (a) above the upper warning limit for the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh and (b) below the lower warning limit for the Western General Hospital, in 2023.

Hospital Standardised Mortality Ratio data is one of a series of measures we use to monitor safety in Scotland’s hospitals. With regard to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (RIE), the Deputy National Clinical Director (DNCD) has been in contact with NHS Lothian and has received assurance that this has been investigated.

The investigation provided evidence that there were a number of factors that have contributed to the higher-than-predicted mortality for admissions to RIE. The DNCD is confident that appropriate action has been put in place to address the findings of the investigation.

The Regional Centre for Cancer and Clinical Neuroscience is based at the Western General, and this is an important factor in its HSMR data. The slightly different case-mix of patients have understandably higher predicted probabilities of mortality.

The mix of patients seen varies between hospitals, and the mortality rate may be higher or lower at a hospital for many reasons; the patients seen, for example, may be more seriously ill than average. HSMRs therefore take account of some of the factors known to affect the risk of death, so that comparisons between individual hospitals and Scotland are made on a comparable basis.

Question reference: S6W-27205

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 May 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Public Health Scotland having changed its dental activity data publication format such that new indicators reportedly cannot be equated with previous releases, how it is possible to compare current dental activity with previous activity levels and evaluate how far is left to go in attaining and surpassing pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels of dentistry provision.

The new publication format from Public Health Scotland is experimental and will continue to develop as the new Payments Model beds in.

The new publications draw from the revised Statement of Dental Remuneration (SDR) which sets out 45 comprehensive care and treatment activities from 1 November, as opposed to the previous SDR which was input-focused and included over 700 individual item codes. In reforming the SDR to focus on comprehensive care and treatment activities, we have also ensured that the overall model of care is predicated on being patient-centric and responsive to individual need and risk.

While we are therefore still able to draw broad comparisons on activity reported for clinical treatments pre- and post-pandemic, given the significant change to the basis on which raw data is collected, it is not appropriate for the two data-sets to be presented as equivalent in statistical reporting and comparisons drawn must be treated with appropriate caution. While broad comparisons are useful for providing indicative metrics on sector capacity pre- and post-pandemic, our focus is to ensure that all activity is of clinical value and appropriate to the patient's need.

Question reference: S6W-27094

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 April 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 13 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it has taken to tackle any inequalities that affect outcomes after an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, specifically to (a) overcome the reportedly low intervention rate where a woman is having a cardiac arrest and (b) improve outcomes for those from (i) deprived and (ii) ethnic minority backgrounds.

The Scottish Government is a member of the Save a Life for Scotland (SALFS) Partnership. The partnership’s actions to tackle inequalities that affect outcomes after an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest are laid out in the Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Strategy 2021 to 2026 .

Work to date includes:

SALFS development of vest-with-breast attachments for use on CPR mannequins which can be used by those delivering training sessions to address some of the barriers to CPR intervention in women.
Targeted work by delivery partners in communities affected by inequalities in OHCA outcomes across Scotland to promote awareness of cardiac arrest and provide CPR and defibrillator training.
Delivery of the 'Play you Part' campaign and the development of accessible CPR training resources

Question reference: S6W-27095

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 April 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 7 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it has taken, since the publication of Out of hospital cardiac arrest: strategy 2021 to 2026, to ensure that defibrillators are (a) placed in positions that are as accessible as possible to the public and (b) available 24/7.

The Scottish Government is a member of the Save a Life for Scotland (SALFS) Partnership. Through SALFS, work is ongoing to increase the strategic placement of defibrillators in Scotland.

The Scottish Government have provided funding to support the Resuscitation Research Group’s development of a tool to help defibrillator guardians make informed decisions about where to place their device in order to have most impact.

In order to maximise defibrillator availability they are usually best mounted on the outside of buildings, and placed in unlocked cabinets. SALFS partners work with defibrillator guardians across Scotland to encourage such placement and availability.

Question reference: S6W-27097

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 April 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 7 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding defibrillators in schools, what action it has taken to encourage the installation of defibrillators in publicly accessible positions for use by the wider community, rather than in locked rooms within the schools.

Question reference: S6W-27098

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 April 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 7 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it has taken to ensure that custodians of defibrillators are periodically trained in the (a) use of the defibrillator and (b) maintenance of the equipment.

The Save a Life for Scotland (SALFS) Partnership support defibrillator awareness inclusion in CPR training sessions. More information on CPR training provided in Scotland can be found here: Learn CPR - Save a Life for Scotland .

The Scottish Government published Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: guide to public access defibrillators - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) in March 2018. The guide provides practical advice to those considering a purchase and installation of a defibrillator including information on safety and maintenance checks (page 3).

Question reference: S6W-27096

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 April 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 7 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to reports that defibrillators held in locked cabinets or requiring the use of an access code can slow down the response to an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and may affect the chance of survival, and what steps it has taken to encourage defibrillators to be installed in unlocked, publicly accessible places.

In order to maximise defibrillator availability, they are usually best mounted on the outside of buildings and placed in unlocked cabinets.

We accept that it is likely that locking defibrillator cabinets introduces an additional delay for bystanders attempting to retrieve a defibrillator and lowers the likelihood of successful application prior to arrival of emergency services.

It is the decision of the defibrillator guardian whether to place their device in a locked or unlocked cabinet. There is limited evidence as to whether using locked cabinets will affect the likelihood of vandalism, however, we understand that communities who fundraise to purchase and place a defibrillator wish to safeguard this important investment. The British Heart Foundation has helpful information online your-guide-to-being-a-defib-guardian.pdf (bhf.org.uk) about being a defibrillator guardian and steps individuals can take to look after their device.

If guardians do purchase a locked cabinet, it is vital to ensure that the local ambulance service knows the access code, and this can be supported by registering the defibrillator on The Circuit - the national defibrillator network .

Question reference: S6O-03407

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 May 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its plans to introduce long-term rent controls.

Question reference: S6W-26874

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 19 April 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 29 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government at what stages of the process there are the longest delays in cancer (a) diagnosis and (b) treatment, and what steps it is taking to tackle any such delays.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on waiting times for each step of a patient’s cancer pathway. The most recently published Cancer Waiting Times data can be found here: Cancer waiting times - 1 October to 31 December 2023 - Cancer waiting times - Publications - Public Health Scotland

Our NHS remains under pressure, which is reflected in the fact that we're treating more patients on 62- and 31-day pathways than before the Covid-19 pandemic. We’re also treating more patients with cancer on time, within both standards, compared to pre-pandemic and 10 years ago. Despite this, there will always be instances where some patients wait longer depending on their health, complexity of disease and agreed treatment plan.

Scottish Government officials continue to engage with Health Boards’ Cancer Management Teams frequently to identify challenges, explore solutions and spread best practice.

To support efforts to reduce cancer waiting times, £11.3 million of non-recurring Cancer Waiting Times funding has been made available in 2023/24 across NHS Scotland. The majority of funding is being directed to urology, colorectal and breast – the three most challenged tumour types and NHS Boards have agreed performance improvement plans in place to ensure cancer cases continue to be prioritised.

The Scottish Government also published our ten year Cancer Strategy for Scotland 2023-2033 along with an initial three year Cancer Action Plan ( Cancer Plan for Scotland 2023 – 2026 ) in June 2023.

Over the next 10 years, our strategic aim is to improve cancer survival and provide excellent, equitably accessible care. The Strategy and Plan take a comprehensive approach to improving patient pathways from prevention and diagnosis through to treatment and post-treatment care, and have people living with cancer, their families and carers at their very heart.

Question reference: S6W-26875

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 April 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 23 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many people are currently waiting for (a) cancer treatment and (b) diagnostic tests with suspicion of cancer.

The Scottish Government does not hold the information requested.

Public Health Scotland publish official statistics on how long patients waited for their first cancer treatment at

Cancer waiting times - 1 October to 31 December 2023 - Cancer waiting times - Publications - Public Health Scotland and on ongoing waits for key diagnostic tests at Diagnostic waiting times - Waits for key diagnostic tests 27 February 2024 - NHS waiting times - diagnostics - Publications - Public Health Scotland

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