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The phased resumption of visiting and communal activity in care homes was referred to in ‘Scotland’s route map through and out of the crisis’. On the 25 th June, the Scottish Government published the Coronavirus (COVID-19): adult care home visiting guidance. This guidance sets out a new 4 stage pathway on how care home visiting restrictions are to be gradually lifted.

Effective on the 3 rd July, care homes which have been COVID free for 28 days will, subject to the agreement of the local Health Protection and Care Home Clinical and Care Professional Oversight teams, be able to move to stage 2 of the pathway which allows for outdoor visits to care home residents by a designated visitor of their choice.

Stages 3 will subsequently allow indoor visits by the designated visitor and greater freedom for outdoor visits and communal activity, whilst stage 4 will see the introduction of indoor visits by visitors Progression along the pathway to stages 3 and 4 will be dependent on whether the scientific evidence indicates that is it safe to do so.

The phased resumption of visiting and communal activity in care homes was referred to in ‘Scotland’s route map through and out of the crisis’.On the 25 th June, the Scottish Government published the Coronavirus (COVID-19): adult care home visiting guidance. This guidance sets out a new 4 stage pathway on how care home visiting restrictions are to be gradually lifted.

Contract tracers working as part of NHS Scotland’s Test and Protect service are employed by the NHS, either within local Health Boards or by NHS National Services Scotland, they are not employed by an agency or agencies. These workers are paid on NHS terms and conditions.

A public health surveillance system for ongoing analysis and interpretation of alcohol and drug health-related data is being developed. Understanding the scope, scale and impact of the problem will inform action to reduce harm and prevent premature death. The work is defined in our drug and alcohol strategy, Rights, Respect and Recovery, and is being led by Public Health Scotland (PHS). PHS are placing a particular focus on the surveillance drug harms and deaths and this is being developed on behalf of the Drug Death Task Force.

PHS are working to provide a statement with more information on how this system will operate and the partners involved. This will be available in September.

We have committed to revising and improving substance use education, both in and out of school settings, to ensure it is good quality, impactful and in line with best practice and we are currently working with PHS to deliver this. We are also taking forward substance use education work in our schools through Curriculum for Excellence, to inform young people and help them make healthy choices.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. Public Health Scotland publishes weekly statistical information on the Test and Protect system every Wednesday. The most recent publication is available at:

https://beta.isdscotland.org/find-publications-and-data/population-health/covid-19/covid-19-statistical-report/ .

Capacity fluctuates on a daily basis. We now have active weekday NHS lab capacity of around 10,000 tests a day and UKG (Glasgow Lighthouse laboratory) capacity of around 20,000, currently providing overall normal weekday capacity of around 30,000.

However, the Glasgow Lighthouse Laboratory may process tests taken from across the UK and other Lighthouse Labs may process Scottish tests.

We will continually review the advice for people shielding, and we will make further changes, if , and when, it is safe to do so. We will provide further advice on how long people will be advised to shield before the end of July, as set out in the document, “Shielding: a way forward for Scotland”, published on 8 June 2020.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that those living with respiratory conditions can access clinically appropriate, safe and effective person-centred healthcare treatment and support.

The draft Respiratory Care Action Plan for Scotland contains a set of commitments to drive improvement in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, sleep apnoea, bronchiectasis, and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

As we continue to develop our understanding of the impact that Covid-19 has had on the health of the people of Scotland, including those that have developed long-term respiratory problems as a result of contracting Covid-19, the final Respiratory Care Action Plan will play a key role in responding to the implications and consequences for many aspects of respiratory care going forward.

The Scottish Government has no role in individuals’ power of attorney arrangements.

Where an individual has concerns about handling of a power of attorney, these are dealt with via local authorities’ and NHS complaints procedures, and through the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman if necessary.

Where a local authority or Health Board has concerns about the decision of an attorney with relevant powers, they can apply for directions from the Sheriff under section 3 of the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000. If concerns persist, the local authority can apply to the Sheriff to appoint the Chief Social Work Officer as welfare guardian to replace the attorney.

It is not possible to definitively quantify the current CT scanning capacity as it is not a fixed number but is dependent on the daily availability of equipment and staff which has been affected by the current COVID-19 pandemic. However, diagnostic services have been running at reduced capacity levels, as Health Boards take account of Covid-19 related physical distancing and additional health and hygiene measures for staff and patients as they provide these services.

During the pandemic, Diagnostic Imaging services have continued to be provided for urgent referrals, and all those who have an urgent suspicion of cancer.

To support the recovery of diagnostic services additional mobile CT and MRI capacity has been secured to support the existing services which are operating at reduced levels due to the requirements of PPE and physical distancing. This capacity will be available for six months and will provide an additional 15,000 CT and 11,000 MRI scans.

The information that is available is given in the following table, which was supplied by National Records of Scotland (NRS). The figures were produced from NRS’s records of the deaths that were registered in Scotland in each year. The latest year for which NRS’s statistical data on causes of death have been finalised, and a definitive breakdown of the numbers of deaths by cause can be provided, is 2018.

In this answer, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) has been taken to refer to thrombosis of the deep veins of the leg. Deaths from DVT frequently occur from complications of the DVT, principally pulmonary embolism, so deaths from pulmonary embolism have been included in these figures.

The International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) system, which is used in the UK to classify deaths, does not allow deep venous thrombosis to be separated from phlebitis (inflammation of a vein), so these figures may include a small number of deaths due to phlebitis.

Deaths attributed to deep vein thrombosis (DVT)* registered in Scotland, 2014 to 2018