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The Scottish Government expects older people’s health or personal care needs to be clearly detailed within their care plans and, for them to be supported by appropriately trained staff, irrespective of whether they are at home, or in a care home.

Local authorities and their planning partners are responsible for determining the types and levels of services required to meet the needs of vulnerable people in their areas and either providing those services directly or commissioning them from independent sector providers. The onus would be on the service provider to set the standards and to ensure staff were appropriately trained to carry out this area of care.

The Scottish Government does not hold information centrally regarding incidences of carers refusing to undertake stoma care duties.

To add to the evidence for clinical and cost-effectiveness of robot-assisted surgery for prostate cancer (and other conditions that may benefit), a research proposal will be drawn up by a sub-group of the National Planning Forum, which is expected to start work early in the new year.

In reviewing our programmes we are increasingly examining their effectiveness for the least well off amongst our communities for example the forthcoming Health Scotland report into smoking cessation. However the Government does not have control of the socio-economic levers including taxation and benefits which would enable it to effectively pursue the actions called for in this report.

This government believes the answer to health inequalities will not be found in simply shifting responsibility between organisations. It requires as the government set out in its response to the Christie Commission for public service organisations to break through bureaucratic barriers and operate across organisational boundaries to produce integrated services that deliver better value for money and improve the social and economic wellbeing of the nation. Together with ensuring people and communities have a much stronger voice in the decisions that affect them and respond to their aspirations and concerns. This is fundamental to the government’s engagement and encouragement of community planning partnerships.

Stoma care clinical nurse specialists review developments in the stoma care supplies market through information published by suppliers and through the national tender process undertaken by NHS National Services Scotland’s National Procurement division.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-17896 on 12 November 2013. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-17896 on 12 November 2013. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-17896 on 12 November 2013. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

NHS boards have an on-going responsibility to ensure that provision of a service is effective, is of a high standard and meets the needs of the patient. There are numerous ways in which the performance of a particular service can be monitored such as liaising with clinical networks and patient groups, applying continuous quality improvement tools and local service audits where necessary.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-17896 on 12 November 2013. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

Our success in safety is well documented and does not necessarily require the inspection of individual practices. Scotland is the first country in the world to implement a national patient safety programme across the whole healthcare system and The Scottish Patient Safety Programme in Primary Care was launched 14 March 2013.

The Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) rewards contractors for the provision of quality care and helps to standardise improvements on the delivery of primary medical services and contractor must co-operate fully with any reasonable inspection or review (including the health board’s QOF annual review) that the health board or another relevant statutory authority wishes to undertake in respect of the achievement points to which it says it is entitled.