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Scottish Planning Policy broadly defines affordable housing as housing of a reasonable quality that is affordable to people on modest incomes. It makes clear that affordable housing may be provided in the form of social rented accommodation, mid-market rented accommodation, shared ownership housing, shared equity housing, housing sold at a discount (including plots for self-build), and low cost housing without subsidy.

Further advice on the types of affordable housing that can contribute to affordable housing requirements is set out in Planning Advice 2/2010 - https://www.gov.scot/publications/planning-advice-note-2-2010-affordable-housing-housing-land-audits/

Statistics published annually by NHS Information Services Division indicate the number of NHS Scotland Employees who have disclosed they are living with a disability. Official statistics do not however record the number of staff who have declined to disclose their disability status.

As indicated in the answer to question S5W-27104 on 19 February 2020 , there are a number of reasons why staff may not elect to disclose a disability; it is important to recognise and respect that this is a personal decision. We continue to work with health boards to improve disclosure rates. A new national self-service HR system means staff can now update their personal information at any time. With this in mind, positive information campaigns will be launched in the spring to encourage staff to ‘bring your whole self to work’.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

The Scottish Government recognises that placental growth factor (PlGF) testing shows promise in improving the detection and diagnosis of pre-eclampsia. However, while NICE Guideline [NG 133] Hypertension in Pregnancy: diagnosis and management, published in June 2019, indicates that women with suspected pre-eclampsia should be offered PlGF testing, the Diagnostics Guidance [DG 23] indicates that there is currently insufficient evidence to recommend the routine adoption of PlGF testing for diagnosing pre-eclampsia. The Diagnostics Guidance [DG 23] is explicit in its recommendations for further research to explore repeat testing further.

The Scottish Government recognises that it is essential to ensure that pre-eclampsia is diagnosed and treated as soon as possible. NHS Lothian is taking part in PARROT 2, an independent research study looking at repeat testing. The Scottish Government will continue to follow the results of both PARROT and PARROT 2 with interest and the Women’s Health Team continues to consider the adoption of PlGF testing in Scotland in light of emerging evidence.

The PARROT 2 trial is an independent research study led by Dr Louise Webster of St Thomas’ Hospital and sponsored by King’s College London and Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.

A plain-English summary of the study and its intended timescales is available on the ISRCTN (International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number) Registry website, a primary clinical trial registry recognised by the World Health Organisation and the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. This also provides contact information for the study’s primary contact. It is accessible via the following link: https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN85912420 .

Data on sepsis and sepsis mortality is collated by Information Services Division (ISD) and is linked with National Records of Scotland (NRS) death records. Guidelines specify the codes which are to be used in all cases where sepsis appears in the patient records during a continuous inpatient hospital stay, and these codes are used to identify those patients with sepsis. This is an internationally recognised and accepted measure of sepsis.

Changes to the reclassification of sepsis occurred in February 2016. Updated clinical coding guidelines were published in October 2017. These significant changes have affected the integrity of the sepsis data and therefore the sepsis mortality data from October 2017 is currently under review.

Using data to help drive improvements in the safety of patient care is a central component of the Scottish Patient Safety Programme (SPSP). The sepsis collaborative was delivered by the SPSP between January 2012 and December 2014 and contributed to a 21% drop in mortality from sepsis. However, as a significant driver of deterioration, sepsis remains a core element of the deteriorating patient work stream.

Disclosure of a disability to an employer is on a voluntary basis and was previously only asked for when someone started employment with the NHS. Staff may therefore have elected not to disclose a ‘hidden’ disability, particularly where a reasonable adjustment was not needed. Equally they may not have recorded a disability developed during the course of their employment.

We continue to work with health boards to improve disclosure rates. A new national self-service HR system means staff can now update their personal information at any time. With this in mind, positive information campaigns will be launched in the spring to encourage staff to ‘bring your whole self to work’.

a) The Scottish Government is committed to further reducing the number of deaths from sepsis. Scottish Government-led sepsis awareness campaigns, which ran in 2018 and 2019, have contributed to awareness of the condition reaching 90%. However, as sepsis can affect anyone at any time, we are committed to continue working with sepsis charities and other stakeholders, including individuals affected by sepsis, to continue raising awareness of the early symptoms of sepsis. The next iteration of the sepsis public awareness campaign will focus on these early symptoms (cold or blotchy hands and feet; uncontrolled shivering; confusion; not passing as much urine; very high/low temperature) and will be launched later this year.

(b) The Scottish Government and NHS Scotland contribute to the “UK 5-year action plan for antimicrobial resistance 2019 to 2024”, which supports the “UK 20-year vision for antimicrobial resistance (AMR)”. The action plan and vision both acknowledge the high level of AMR research coordination and collaboration that already exists across the UK, however also recognise the importance of the further research required to tackle AMR.

In 2019, the Scottish Government commissioned the establishment of the Scottish One Health National AMR Action Plan Group, led by Health Protection Scotland (HPS), to coordinate the delivery of the UK five-year national action plan.

HPS is involved in several collaborative research projects with universities and other organisations across Scotland, the UK and Europe aimed at helping tackle AMR. This includes research to understand the risk factors for acquisition and outcome of certain resistance organisms, as well as research into the effectiveness of interventions aiming to drive behavioural change around antimicrobial use. Within HPS, the Scottish One Health Antimicrobial Use and Antimicrobial Resistance (SONAAR) programme has responsibility for developing epidemiological evidence to inform the development of robust local and national interventions and initiatives to help tackle AMR.

Significant work is also under way to develop new evidence-based interventions to prevent infections, decreasing the need for and use of antimicrobials and in turn reducing the potential for the development of resistance.

The Scottish Antimicrobial Prescribing Group (SAPG), established in 2008 at the request of the Scottish Government, also sits on the Scottish One Health National AMR Action Plan Group and is involved in a number of research collaborations with universities and other organisations across Scotland, focussing predominantly on approaches to promote prudent and optimal use of antimicrobials in order to prevent overuse and, ultimately, help contain AMR.

The Scottish Government is committed to increasing the number of disabled people employed across the NHS.

Our NHS Professional Careers Programme continues to place disabled graduates in rewarding roles and the careers of their choices. A number of health boards are also working with project SEARCH to help people with intellectual impairments into employment.

We are working with health boards to ensure that all jobs are made accessible for disabled applicants. Work is also underway to increase disclosure rates and develop national commitments for the recruitment, retention and progression of people with protected characteristics, including those with a disability.

Information on cases of sepsis is only held centrally for people admitted to hospital. The following table presents the number of hospital stays with a diagnosis of sepsis at any point during the stay by NHS Board of Treatment for the years 2017, 2018 and up to June 2019. Note that because of changes to coding these figures are not directly comparable with those from previous years. 

1.  These statistics are derived from data collected on discharges from non-obstetric and non-psychiatric hospitals (SMR01) in Scotland.
2.  A hospital stay is selected if sepsis is recorded at any point during the stay.
3.  Data for 2019 includes discharges up to June 2019.
4.  International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision (ICD10) codes used to 
   identify relevant cases: A40, A41, P36, A02.1, A22.7, A26.7, A32.7, A42.7, B37.7, O85X. 
5.  Year is based on date of discharge
6.  Note that the coding of sepsis in Scotland was changed in October 2017 and that figures for 2018 are not comparable with those for previous years.