Seòmar agus comataidhean

The total number of NHS patients that have been treated in private (independent) hospitals in each of the last five financial years and reported to PHS is presented in the following table.

The information requested on how many NHS shifts have been covered by private agency staff in each of the last 10 years is not centrally available.

Information on Medical & Dental and Nursing & midwifery bank and agency spend by NHS Board since March 2014 can be found on the TURAS NHS Education for Scotland workforce statistics site at: NHSScotland workforce | Turas Data Intelligence Bank and Agency) tab.

The majority ofthis budget is directly allocated to Health Boards to support international recruitment and domestic recruitment. All of this budget is earmarked for allocation by financial year end, with £4.5 million of this funding already allocated thus far. A further £0.3m supports other initiatives including refugee doctors and nurses, marketing of NHS Scotland, and employability programmes.

We are working closely with NatureScot and Scottish Forestry in exploring the best approach to developing a new National Register of Ancient Woodlands. A new National Register of Ancient Woodlands is part of a suite of initiatives that will be underpinned by a new biodiversity strategy which we recently consulted on this summer.

Primary care budgets provide additional funding to support core enabling programmes for primary care such as mental health, health inequalities and rural healthcare. Funds that are allocated are based on need, and final confirmation of spend will be included as part of the Scottish Government provisional outturn.

Escalation addresses complex issues and an element of judgement will always be required. The timeline will be driven by the actions within NHS Forth Valley’s Improvement Plan and their associated timelines. My expectation was for the Improvement Plan to be developed and presented to the Assurance Board for scrutiny at its first meeting, with a focus on completing immediate actions by the end of the year.

The overall aim of escalation and the related package of scrutiny and intervention put in place is to support any NHS Board, including NHS Forth Valley, to deliver the required improvement and address the underlying issues effectively and sustainably so that they can be safely de-escalated as swiftly as possible.

The Assurance Board, which has been established to bring direct SG oversight of NHS Forth Valley’s escalation, will provide advice to the Director General about the future escalation status of NHS Forth Valley, including criteria for de-escalation.

The Scottish Government is fully committed to ensuring that the NHS in Scotland delivers high quality, safe, effective and person-centred care to all patients, every time they access health services. The Scottish Patient Safety Programme (SPSP) continues to be implemented in every NHS Board, including NHS Forth Valley. It is designed to improve the safety of care. It is vital for patients to have confidence that when they access any part of the healthcare system, they will receive the best available treatment without fear of harm.

The Stage 4 escalation is not a reflection of the staff working tirelessly to provide care for the population of Forth Valley. The wellbeing and support for staff is paramount. This escalation decision has been made to allow the leadership team to take forward the transformational change required to improve the culture and leadership, but with the appropriate additional support through the Assurance Board, to ensure effective and efficient change which they have not been able to implement to date. NHS Forth Valley are responsible for delivering improvement against an agreed Plan, and support will be provided to assist NHS Forth Valley in delivery.

If staff do wish to raise concerns during this time then they should be supported to do so and they should be protected throughout the process and not suffer any harm as a result of speaking up. Boards are expected to investigate concerns fairly and appropriately.

The information requested on what percentage of the total number of doctors have permanently left NHS Scotland in each of the last five years is not centrally available. We do not hold data on the number of staff that have permanently left NHS Scotland.

Information on the number of leavers by financial year, broken down by job family and NHS Board, can be found on the TURAS NHS Education for Scotland workforce statistics site at: NHSScotland workforce | Turas Data Intelligence

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12413 on 9 December 2022. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

The Scottish Government’s Chief Scientist Office invests through NHS Research Scotland in research infrastructure in Health Boards that allows them to host and participate in clinical research studies and trials. Health Boards make individual decisions about participating in the trials that are offered to them, subject to the trials that are already being supported within each Health Board, and the research expertise and capacity available to take on additional trials. Scottish Health Boards are continuing to participate in a number of trials of medicines for the prevention or treatment of COVID-19 disease, providing opportunities for their patient populations to enrol in these studies, although none currently include Evusheld. Should a trial sponsor organisation approach Scottish Health Boards about participating in a trial of Evusheld, participation would be considered by Health Boards with participation subject to the research expertise and capacity available.