- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive whether distinction awards made to consultants are added to salaries and therefore reflected in pension provision.
Answer
Yes.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what the value of distinction awards made to consultants was in (a) 2007-08 and (b) 2008-09 and has been in 2009-10, broken down by number of consultants.
Answer
The number of award holders and the associated funding allocated to the NHS boards in Scotland in the three most recent financial years is as follows:
| Financial Year | Number of Award Holders | Funding allocated to boards for Distinction Awards (£) |
| 2007-08 | 524 | 24,164,310 |
| 2008-09 | 552 | 26,460,756 |
| 2009-10 | 578 | 27,961,798 |
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-29763 by Nicola Sturgeon on 6 January 2010, whether every senior charge nurse has direct responsibility for the deployment of cleaning staff and, if not, where this responsibility lies.
Answer
Not all Senior Charge Nurses (SCNs) have direct responsibility for the routine deployment of cleaning staff. In some areas this responsibility lies with Domestic Supervisors. However, Domestic Supervisors will respond to requests from SCNs to address any specific issues identified through their role of promoting a clean and safe environment for staff, patients and visitors.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 11 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how many procedures have been cancelled due to recent winter pressures, broken down by NHS board.
Answer
Centrally collected, validated statistics do not carry information on the reasons why scheduled operations or procedures are cancelled or delayed.
In the event that an operation or procedure is cancelled by the service, for whatever reason, the patient would be made a further, reasonable offer as soon as possible which should not be detrimental to the patient''s waiting time.
Official statistics relating to cancellations of outpatient attendances and inpatient/day case treatment are published as part of the quarterly update to the waiting times and waiting lists section of the Information Services Division''s (ISD) website (http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/3454.html).
The next publication is scheduled for 23 February 2010 and will include cancellation statistics up to the quarter ending 31 December 2009 derived from the National Waiting Times Data Warehouse.
The subsequent publication is scheduled for 25 May 2010 and will include statistics up to the quarter ending 31 March 2010.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what the total pension provision for retired consultants with distinction awards was in (a) 2007-08 and (b) 2008-09 and has been in 2009-10 and what proportion of that pension provision can be attributed to distinction awards.
Answer
NHS pensions including pensions for consultants are the responsibility of the Scottish Public Pension Agency (SPPA). Distinction Awards are consolidated into consultant salaries and so SPPA does not hold the information in the detail requested.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been treated for hypothermia during the recent cold weather conditions and what proportion was represented by individuals aged over 60.
Answer
People with hypothermia may be treated in a number of different health care settings (for example; accident and emergency (A&E) departments, acute hospitals).
The number of patients admitted to general acute hospitals with a diagnosis of hypothermia during this period will be available on publication of the acute hospital care section of ISD''s website scheduled for 28 September 2010. This publication will include detailed age and diagnosis specific information for hospital admissions based on SMR01 patient level discharge records up to the year ending 31 March 2010.
According to management information, during the period 21 December 2009 to 3 January 2010, NHS boards reported around 55 patients attended A&E departments with a provisional diagnosis of hypothermia across NHSScotland. Approximately 50% of these were patients aged 60 or over.
It should be noted that the management information quoted above is likely to be incomplete as the ability of A&E data systems to capture diagnosis based information varies between NHS boards. Interpretation should be made with caution.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive who decides on the granting of distinction awards to consultants and whether it will detail the professional background of those involved.
Answer
The Scottish Advisory Committee on Distinction Awards (SACDA) a non-departmental public body, acts on behalf of Scottish ministers in deciding which individual medical and dental consultants in the NHS in Scotland should receive distinction awards for outstanding professional work.
Members are appointed by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing and they must adhere to a code of conduct and ethical standards in public life. Basic details of SACDA Committee Members and Advisers together with their professional status can be found on the SACDA website at http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/sacda. More details on the committee members are published within the annual report which is also available on the SACDA website under the section called annual report.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 January 2010
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 18 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-29764 by Nicola Sturgeon on 6 January 2010, how many senior charge nurses have direct access to budgets for urgent repairs and replacement equipment.
Answer
The HAI National Action Plan requires NHS boards to have an identified budget for urgent repairs and replacement equipment available to senior charge nurses. All NHS boards have confirmed that they comply with this aspect of the action plan.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 10 December 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 18 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to ensure that vulnerable patients with muscular dystrophy have access to NHS-funded muscular dystrophy care advisors.
Answer
The Scottish Government is aware of the value people living with muscular dystrophy, and their families, attach to the support provided by the two muscular dystrophy care advisors in Scotland.
The issue of the funding of these posts is currently being considered in the context of the bids which the NHS Regional Planning Groups have submitted for investment in Year 3 of the National Delivery Plan for Specialist Children''s Services.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 December 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 18 January 2010
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-28876 by Shona Robison on 19 November 2009, what its position is on the consistency of care charges set by local authorities.
Answer
COSLA has issued guidance on charging for non-residential social care services. The aim of that guidance is to achieve consistency across local authorities. The guidance is not intended to produce uniformity but to provide discretion to councils to establish their own charging policies in order to align with local priorities and local needs.
COSLA have assured the Scottish Government that they will respond to public concern on charging for home care by ensuring that local authorities are better sighted on the charging regimes in place across Scotland. They are also exploring the possibility of a web-based resource for councils to ensure that individual charging policies could be effectively bench-marked.
