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From the £12 million earmarked to expand Hospital at Home and provide additional capacity over winter, we have confirmed funding of more than £3.5 million, of which the majority of health Boards will get a share, for delivery of additional capacity in 2023-24.

Work is ongoing with Boards to finalise the conclusions around impact of the enhanced services over winter but NHS Boards have reported patient feedback has been extremely positive for the new services.

At present, no assessment has been made of the effectiveness of NHS weight management services in preventing and reversing type 2 diabetes. However, it is encouraging that increases in referrals to weight management services has been reported in the latest statistics.

Prior to 2019, there was a lack of standardised information collected by NHS Boards to enable tracking of provision of weight management services. Approved by the Scottish Type 2 Diabetes Prevention Framework Oversight Group, a core dataset was developed in collaboration with Scottish Government, Public Health Scotland (PHS) and NHS Boards. The core dataset ensures consistency and comparability in the data being collected.

Data on referrals to weight management and type 2 diabetes prevention services was first published by PHS in May 2021 and the latest data was published March 2024 . The publication is currently classed as Official Statistics in development. The core dataset and reporting provides health boards with insight and direction as to future planning of type 2 diabetes prevention and weight management services.

We will continue to improve data collection and monitoring to assess the impact of NHS weight management services in Scotland.

There are standard procedures in place in hospitals across Scotland for treating patients who present with an overdose, regardless of the substance involved.

Updated guidance on the use of mobile phone technologies in schools will be published in the coming weeks. The current guidance to education authorities and schools on this issue remains available from Guidance on Developing Policies to Promote the Safe and Responsible Use of Mobile Technology in Schools (www.gov.scot).

We recognise the ongoing impact that adverse weather conditions are having on Scotland’s agricultural industry – conditions that are a direct result of climate change.

The poor weather conditions experienced in the early spring will be presenting challenges to farmers and crofters at the time of peak lambing and calving, and will be impacting the ability to sow crops. The Farm Advisory Service, funded by the Scottish Government, provides resources for farmers and crofters in responding to the wet weather this year.

The Farm Advisory Service is also signposting people towards the charity RSABI. RSABI provide practical, emotional and financial support to all people involved in the Scottish agricultural industry.

While the Scottish Government sets the strategic policy for the NHS in Scotland, legal responsibility for service delivery rests locally with Health Boards and their healthcare professionals. As part of the service redesign under the GP contract, the focus is on reconfiguring a number of services at scale, across the country, including Vaccinations and Community Treatment & Care services. The Scottish Government did not stipulate delivery models; Health Boards, Integration Authorities and Local Medical Committees have been asked to work together to design services which will meet the needs of patients in their areas, including accessibility.

It remains the Scottish Government’s intention to update the School Premises (General Requirements and Standards) (Scotland) Regulations 1967.

Given the time elapsed between the consultation that took place in 2017-18, we must now consider the updated context that the regulations exist in.

We are now taking this work forward and will re-consult on the Regulations in due course.

The Scottish Government continues to support NHS Dumfries and Galloway respond to the cyber-attack through the provision of the Scottish multi-agency cyber incident support arrangements. These arrangements bring national agencies, including the National Cyber Security Centre, law enforcement (including Police Scotland), NHS Cyber Security Centre of Excellence, NHS Boards and the Scottish Government together to support the response and recovery to the incident.

For further information I refer the member to the answer to question S6T-01869 on 19 March 2024 which is available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/official-report/search-what-was-said-in-parliament .

It is important to note that through the Redesign of Urgent Care Programme, NHS 24 is available 24/7 and will be able to assist patients across Scotland, including the North East Scotland region, access the most appropriate healthcare pathway over a 24 hour period.

The decision to close the service overnight is an operational decision for local health boards and integrated joint boards to get the best combination of local and specialist services that meets the needs of their population in line with the National Clinical Strategy. It has been reported by NHS Grampian that this bring this service in line with other services across Moray and Aberdeen City. The Scottish Government do not have a specific policy on the provision of Minor Injury Units in communities.

It is important to stress that these Minor Injury Units will continue to operate during the day and the Board report that there is minimal activity at these units during the out of hours period. These services are only equipped to deal with minor injuries which do not need immediate attention. Those patients that may have attended the MIU during the proposed closure times will either be provided with a scheduled appointment through NHS 24 to attend the next morning, or if an emergency will be directed straight to A&E.

Minor injury services are also available at the majority of the local GP practices.

Through the Redesign of Urgent Care (RUC), we have bolstered capacity at NHS24, which has seen staffing levels increase by 65% since 2007 and now operates as a 24/7 service, and are providing more hospital alternatives to prevent unnecessary attendances to A&E.

The combination of services has significantly contributed to reduced attendance at Emergency Departments, with self-presentations between February 2023 – January 2024 down by over 90,000 (around 11%) compared to pre-Covid levels.

The Scottish Government works closely with the Centre for Sustainable Delivery (CfSD) to support delivery of improvement programmes, including the Urgent and Unscheduled Care collaborative, to ensure sustainable ways of delivering services, improving access for patients, and reducing unnecessary demand for services. A Speciality Delivery Group meets regularly to monitor progress and support initiatives which are enhancing the RUC pathway.