- Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 February 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the commitment in its Digital Health and Care Strategy, how it plans to provide better access for health and care staff to appropriate data, to better analyse, understand and improve processes and services at different levels and better inform strategic planning priorities.
Answer
The Scottish Government continues to invest in platforms that will improve access and analytic capacities across health and social care. For example, we continue to invest in the development of our National Digital Platform and the Seer platform which will improve access to latest analytical tools and increase access to data for staff.
- Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 February 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the commitment in its Digital Health and Care Strategy, what user-friendly, role-appropriate information and resources it has produced to support people being cared for.
Answer
The Scottish Government recognises it is important for the workforce and members of the public to have access to information about digital services they use in the right format. To support us with this we take a strong participatory approach which includes a Digital Health and Care Equalities and Inclusion Advisory Group comprised of around 20 representatives including those with lived experience.
Examples of user-friendly information available include the Protect Scotland App which was available in a number of languages and in child friendly format. We have also developed guidance on Near Me in a range of formats including child friendly, easy read versions and an information leaflet in a range of languages.
Our cross-sector Building Digital Skills & Leadership Programme led by NHS Education for Scotland aims to provide digital skills learning for all staff across health and social care that is tailored to the jobs they do and is aligned to the current and emerging technologies that are transforming services for our patients and service users.
- Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 February 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what it has done to further embed Office 365 across the health and care system.
Answer
Office 365 is already widely embedded across health and care with over 160,000 staff enabled to use the latest Microsoft Office software. A key part of this is a single tenancy agreement for NHS Scotland that supports a once for Scotland approach. Use of Office 365 by social care staff is the responsibility of local authorities.
In relation to health and care we have established the M365 Cross-Organisation Collaboration programme which is making it easier for health and social care staff to collaborate and share information. Early benefits from this programme include increased efficiency and improved working experience. The rollout of Phase 1 functionality across Scotland is underway, following successful integrations between NHS and Local Authorities.
We have also been working closely with NHS Education for Scotland to ensure ongoing training on Office 365 is provided to health and care colleagues.
Further information is set out in the annual delivery plan for digital health & care (see Care in the Digital Age: delivery plan 2022 to 2023 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) ).
- Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 February 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the commitment in its Digital Health and Care Strategy, what it is doing to develop digital services in support of those in receipt of care at home.
Answer
Scottish Government is doing a range of things to support care at home. Delivery is ongoing, as set out in the annual delivery plan for Digital Health & Care (see Care in the Digital Age: delivery plan 2022 to 2023 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) ). An update will be published later this year with delivery priorities for 2023/24, and will include an overview of progress against existing commitments.
In addition, key work is being taken forward through the digital telecare programme, being led by Local Government Digital Office (LGDO), to safely transition over 180,000 users of telecare in Scotland from analogue to digital telephony connections. This offers significant opportunities to look to further develop this service with more advanced technologies and better use of data. This has, to date, included the development of key resources for local areas through a developed digital telecare playbook.
As well as delivery aims set out in the healthcare framework for care homes - My Health, My Care, My Home - healthcare framework for adults living in care homes - gov.scot ( www.gov.scot ), further work is being taken forward through the national Technology Enabled Care (TEC) programme’s digital in social care activity - Digital Social Care | TEC Scotland.
- Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 February 2023
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has published a cloud-first strategy across health and care.
Answer
The Digital Directorate have published Scotland’s Cloud First policy alongside a set of principles and a framework for adoption. Cloud First – Cloud First - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) . The Cloud First policy is an integral part of delivering the Scottish Government Digital Strategy - A changing nation: how Scotland will thrive in a digital world - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)
The Digital Health and Care Strategy is set within the wider context set out by the Digital Strategy for Scotland and acts as a support to it and confirms how our health and care services will adopt and embed its principles and approaches including the Cloud First policy. Within that context, work is currently underway on the overall Technical Roadmap for Scotland's health & care system, which includes the use of cloud technology as appropriate.
- Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 20 January 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 February 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what it considers the impact of digital technology is on the health and care workforce.
Answer
The impact of digital technology on the health and care workforce has been considered in several reports, such as the Topol Review commissioned by NHS England The Topol Review — NHS Health Education England (hee.nhs.uk) .
In general terms, digital technology can support the workforce in the delivery of care, free up capacity reducing the administrative burden and open up opportunities for new models of care and new ways of working. The workforce already works in the digital age, and digital technology will continue to augment and enhance the person-centred nature of health and social care services.
- Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 January 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 February 2023
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has a permanent digital testing environment that allows potential new health and care technology to be developed and tested in a safe environment, and, if this is the case, how much was spent on developing it.
Answer
DHI offer a demonstration environment where new innovations and ideas for health and care can be tested. All health boards have their own test environments and processes. NES and NSS both have national test infrastructure. As part of all major programmes, testing is a critical component which is included in the overall funding for systems and technology.
- Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 February 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the commitment in its Digital Health and Care Strategy, what it has done to streamline the information governance landscape setting out the roles of key organisations within health and care.
Answer
The Scottish Government has undertaken extensive engagement with stakeholders across health and care, including health boards, the research community, industry and many other stakeholders, in order to understand the information governance landscape and identify opportunities for improvement.
The executive summary of our Information Governance review was published on 1 April 2022. As a result of the recommendations from the review, The National Information Governance Programme had been established to streamline the Information Governance landscape with focus on the following key areas:
- Co-designing options for a more balanced, federated IG model
- Improving the Information Governance maturity across the Health and Social Care Ecosystem
- Empowering People in digital and data
- Delivering the right Information Governance tools
- Co-designing transformative participatory public engagement models and
- Enhancing transparency
Furthermore, the Scottish Government recently funded and launched Research Data Scotland ( RDS). RDSis working to create a new Researcher Access Service that will provide streamlined lawful, fair and safe access to health and care data for the public good.
- Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 February 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the commitment in its Digital Health and Care Strategy, what it has done to expand the specialist digital, data, design and technology (DDAT) professional workforce within health and social care.
Answer
Whilst recruitment is the responsibility of the employing health and social care organisation, the Scottish Government, COSLA and the Local Government Digital Office are currently considering how to best apply the DDaT Professional Framework to the health and social care sector.
- Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 January 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 February 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the commitment in its Digital Health and Care Strategy, how many devices or pieces of equipment it has bought since October 2021 to enable health and care staff to work remotely/flexibly, broken down by (a) NHS board and (b) type of device or equipment.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-14107 on 2 February 2023. 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 .
