Seòmar agus comataidhean

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-07758 on 30 March 2017. 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 planned National Advisory Committee on Chronic pain will be expected to guide the improvement of chronic pain management at all levels across health and social care. The Committee will, for example, work on the development of a dataset to allow for effective oversight of chronic pain services, including the potential development of Quality Performance Indicators.

The Scottish Government expects all patients to have access to treatment which is appropriate to individual clinical needs. The Scottish Government is committed to improving services for people living with chronic pain. This is underlined by the fact that Scotland is the only nation in the UK to routinely collect and publish waiting times data in this area.

The Scottish Government estimate that there are 44,000 young carers aged between 4-17 in Scotland and the 2011 census showed that there are 6,300 students who identify as carers aged between 18-24. This does not distinguish between part time and full time study.

The Scottish Government is working to support young carers to continue with their education in school, college or in university and not to lose out due to the demands of their caring role. We funded the College Development Network to design and deliver an online resource for learners with caring responsibilities. And while the Scottish Government does not collect annual data on the number of young carers in part time study an Action Planning Tool is available to help colleges improve identification and meet the needs of student carers.

In Scotland, it is the responsibility of the Molecular Pathology Consortium (MPC) Steering Group to make overall decisions with regard to the availability of molecular pathology tests, such as genetic testing for Lynch syndrome. The current guidance from the MPC is to test anyone who has been diagnosed with colorectal cancer before the age of 60 - this was raised from under the age of 50 in 2015, to ensure more people than ever are now covered by the testing protocols. Where family testing is required, this is available through the Scottish Clinical Genetics service.

Patients may be given the opportunity to take part in the Cancer Prevention Project 3 (CaPP3). This project focuses on finding the right dose of aspirin for people with a mismatch repair gene defect, the underlying cause of Lynch syndrome, to prevent cancer from developing. Anyone who takes part in CaPP3 will be invited to be part of a national registry which can provide careful follow-up to report side effects and provide detailed information about any cancers or polyps which are found on routine check-ups.

The Scottish Government expects all Health Boards to ensure appropriate referral and testing for Lynch syndrome occurs for all patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer before the age of 60.

Information on how many complaints regarding GP surgeries by each NHS Board since 1999 is not held centrally.

The Information Services Division (ISD) of NHS National Services Scotland publishes information submitted by NHS Boards about complaints relating to Family Health Services (FHS). Five broad service/contractor types are included within the FHS complaints statistics: Medical, Dental, Pharmaceutical, Ophthalmic and Administration. This information can be found at http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Quality-Indicators/Publications/data-tables.asp?id=1754#1754.

When reviewing these statistics it is worthwhile to note that the Patient Rights (Scotland) Act 2011 and the Regulations and Directions made under Section 15 of the Act put new complaints arrangements in place, including requirements to record, report, review and learn from complaints about Primary Care services.

This information is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

Access to GP services is an important issue for the Scottish Government and I’m aware that many of general practices have, for many years, adjusted appointment arrangements in order to try to prioritise urgency, and support quality and continuity of patient care.

We recognise that local situations vary and so practice partners are responsible for designing their own patient appointment and consultation arrangements. We expect them to use their professional judgement to make decisions which enable them to run the best possible service and deliver for their patient needs. GPs are encouraged to develop technology and deploy the talents of their staff appropriately to introduce new, innovative ways of working to benefit their patients by prioritising urgency, and supporting quality and continuity of patient care.

This is a matter for individual Health Boards. The information requested is not held centrally.

A report on the Specialist Nursing and Care Fund which will summarise the outcome of NHS Board reviews of their specialist nursing services will be published shortly. The report will also focus on how the additional investment from the fund has been used by NHS Boards.