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All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the parliament website, the search facility forwhich can be found at:

In the consultation paper,respondees have been asked to consider a number of potential options includingthe extension of the National Clinical Assessment Authority’s remit in relationto Scotland. The NCAA currently only deals with doctors anddentists which is inconsistent with the multi-professional and team approach toall workforce development and performance in Scotland.

Community engagement is akey part of the community planning process. Communities Scotland aredeveloping national standards to improve the way communities, including olderpeople, can influence the planning and delivery of services. The standards arebeing developed from a series of focus groups, which include one aimedspecifically at older people. One of the principles underpinning the standardsis that fairness, equalityand inclusion must underpin all aspects of community engagement. This shouldhelp ensure that older people are effectively engaged. The detail of howengagement is taken forward is a matter for community planning partnershipsdepending on local circumstances.

The findings of the researchInvolving Older People: Lessons for Community Planning have been widelycirculated to service planners and providers and were the focus of a conferenceorganised by COSLA on 1 December 2003. This was designed to raise awareness anddisseminate good practice supplementing the guidance referred to above.

The Health WhitePaper, Partnership for Care, is explicit that looking at services from apatient’s point of view should be a key driver of change in the Health Service.Patient Focus and Public Involvement (PFPI) aims to ensure all patient and public groups are considered in NHSservice planning as appropriate, taking full account of equality and diversityissues such as age, religion/faith, race/ethnicity, sexuality, disability andgender. Draft guidance to ensure that the public are informed, engaged andconsulted on all policies and services developed by the Health Department andNHSScotland has recently been distributed to NHS board chief executives andother key stakeholders for final comment. This guidance takes account of equalityissues, including age.

Through our Know the ScoreDrugs Communications Strategy, written materials on preventing initiation intoinjecting, hepatitis B and hepatitis C have been disseminated widely to drugsand prison services across Scotland. These materials highlight the risks of transmittingblood-borne viruses through injecting.

We are also considering therecommendations from a recent research study by the University of Paisley which observed injecting practices among a group ofdrug users.