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TrakCare is used as the main patient management system by 13 Health Boards:

• NHS Ayrshire and Arran;
• NHS Borders;
• NHS Fife;
• NHS Forth Valley;
• NHS Great Glasgow and Clyde;
• NHS Grampian;
• Golden Jubilee National Hospital;
• NHS Highland;
• NHS Lanarkshire;
• NHS Lothian;
• NHS Orkney;
• NHS Shetland; and
• NHS Tayside.

All 13 Health Boards use TrakCare for waiting lists, Outpatients and inpatients, clinical coding, national Scottish Morbidity Records and new ways returns. Various Boards also use TrakCare for Emergency Departments, maternity services, mental health, community services, radiology, and theatres.

In addition, the system supports order request functionality for the service departments to manage the provision of laboratory, X-ray and diagnostic services; and Allied Health Professionals, observations, and clinical data recoding in clinical forms to varying degrees.

The Scottish Government does not collate or hold information on how many staff the Health Boards employ to maintain TrakCare.

The Scottish Government continues to protect investment in digital within health services, as shown in the published budget. Planning remains underway to fully assess the impact on planned activity for 2024-25 that takes into account the considerable financial challenges facing the Scottish Government in the forthcoming financial year, and we will publish our Delivery Plan for Digital Health & Care in April 2024. This will confirm delivery priorities for the year ahead using the investment available.

The Scottish Government is absolutely committed to keeping our NHS true to its founding principles – publicly-owned, publicly-operated, and free at the point of need. Health Boards might arrange treatment for some patients outwith NHS Scotland, including the private sector in exceptional circumstances. It is for local NHS Health Boards to determine how they use the private sector and to agree any contractual arrangements.

Following the completion of the Allied Health Professions (AHP) Education and Workforce Policy Review, an advisory group has been established to oversee the effective implementation of the recommendations. The group held its second meeting on 4 March 2024 where the group considered the delivery plan.

The delivery plan takes an outcome based approach and the group recognises the complexity and interdependency of how the suite of recommendations contributes to achieving the overarching positive change required.

The group will consider the timescales required to meet the overarching aims at its future meetings, scheduled in June and October 2024.

The Scottish Government and COSLA committed to the provision of suicide bereavement support across Scotland in their Creating Hope Together action plan ( 2022-25). The bereavement support service is a core element of our approach to ensuring everyone affected by suicide is able to access high quality, compassionate, appropriate and timely support.

Since August 2021 we have funded bereavement support service pilots in NHS Ayrshire and Arran and NHS Highland. Over 2023-24 we have worked with partners to design and plan the roll-out of the service, drawing on the positive evaluation of the pilots. Expansion of the bereavement support service will begin from 2024-25, working closely with local partners. Further details will be confirmed as soon as possible.

The Scottish Government has engaged in extensive cross-departmental and multi-agency work to consider the environmental impact of single-use vapes including working closely to with other nations across the UK.

On 29 Jan 2024 I wrote to the Convener of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee to confirm the Scottish Government’s intention to progress legislation to prohibit the sale and supply of single-use vapes, with a view of a ban coming into force at the earliest opportunity. This builds upon the research commissioned by the Scottish Government into the environmental impact of single-use vapes that was published in June 2023.

The Scottish Government is providing record funding of over £14 billion to local authorities in 2024-25, including £600.6 million of additional revenue funding for day to day services.

Subject to the outcome of the UK Government Spring Budget, the Scottish Government has committed to pass on up to £62.7 million of additional funding directly to local government alongside any consequentials received for increased teacher pension employer contributions.

Local authorities are independent corporate bodies with their own powers and responsibilities and are entirely separate from the Scottish Government. As long as they act lawfully, it is up to each local authority how it manages its day-to-day business and decision making processes. Ultimately, it is for locally elected representatives to make local decisions on how best to deliver services to their local communities.

The Scottish Government does not undertake assessments of available community spaces to local community groups and clubs. This is a matter for the relevant public authorities with responsibility for the land or buildings available in their authority area and the decision to undertake an assessment would be for them to consider. Under the Community Empowerment Act (2015), communities are, however, able to request a right to buy, lease, manage or use land and buildings belonging to local authorities, Scottish public bodies or Scottish Ministers. Scottish Government encourages relevant authorities to work with their communities to make sure they can access and make use of available spaces.

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that Israeli military planes have used Glasgow Prestwick Airport during the ongoing conflict in Israel and Palestine, whether it received any prior notification that this would happen. Glasgow Prestwick Airport operates on a commercial basis and at arm’s length from the Scottish Government.

Operational decisions regarding the day-to-day running of the airport, are a matter for the management of Glasgow Prestwick Airport. Scottish Government did not receive any prior notification.