- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 October 2017
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 1 November 2017
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the future workforce requirements of (a) registered nurses and (b) health care support workers in care homes.
Answer
The National Health and Social Care Workforce Plan will strengthen and harmonise workforce planning practice, take full account of the future demand for safe and high quality services for Scotland’s people and help to more accurately identify and address gaps in supply, including within the Social Care workforce.
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Part 1 of the Plan focuses on NHSScotland workforce planning and was published on 28 June 2017.
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Part 2, covering the Social Care workforce, will be published jointly with COSLA later this year. This approach will enable different workforce planning systems to take stock, and move forward incrementally towards improved integrated planning across the full Social Care landscape.
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Part 3, covering the workforce in primary care, will be published following the conclusion of GMS contract negotiations.
We are working with all major stakeholders across Health and Social Care, including NHSScotland Boards, COSLA, Scottish Care and other organisations as we take the Plan forward.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 October 2017
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 1 November 2017
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the number of places required in care homes over the next (a) 5, (b) 10 and (c) 15 years.
Answer
Integration Authorities are responsible across Scotland for undertaking strategic needs assessments to inform their statutorily required strategic commissioning plans for their area. These plans are required to be prepared and reviewed on a 3 year rolling basis, so that Integration Authorities are planning for the medium to longer term, including identifying and determining the needs of their local population for care home places. This work considers needs, population dynamics and projections, service activity, supply and demand and gaps in provision, which in turn allows strategic commissioning plans to identify investments and disinvestments according to locally determined priorities within available resources, and which require to achieve or contribute to the national health and wellbeing outcomes.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 October 2017
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 1 November 2017
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that the National Care Home Contract recognises the complex clinical needs of residents.
Answer
The National Care Home Contract is negotiated annually between COSLA, Scottish Care and CCPS. The Scottish Government is contributing to a range of work streams designed to reform and develop the National Care Home Contract, including in respect of workforce issues and quality and improvement. This will ensure that the National Care Home Contract remains fit for purpose and responsive to the changing needs of care home residents.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 October 2017
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 1 November 2017
To ask the Scottish Government how many trips Transport Scotland officials made claims for in respect of personal mileage in the last year, broken down by how many (a) are electric, and (b) petrol or diesel vehicles were used.
Answer
In the last 12 months (Oct 2016 – Sep 2017) Transport Scotland officials made 830 claims for motor allowance through the Travel and Subsistence system. The Motor Allowance claim does not record the type of vehicle or fuel used so it is not possible to break this down further between petrol and electric vehicles.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 October 2017
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 1 November 2017
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of international evidence that it understands demonstrates that access to stable, registered nurse staffing in care homes delivers positive care outcomes for residents as well as improved quality of life.
Answer
The Scottish Government, in collaboration with academic and other expert colleagues, is constantly reviewing research evidence to inform the development of evidence based policy in relation to nursing in the care home sector. Whilst the current UK and International (mainly US) evidence base in this area is limited, and still developing, there are a number of consistent findings from the available literature:
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Access to the full range of health and social care professionals and high quality support work are the key to delivering holistic care.
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Nursing roles in care homes are broad and multifaceted, and outcomes for residents can include enhanced personhood and wellbeing, improved health and function, and enhanced quality of life.
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Positive outcomes on relatives, staff and the home from nurses in general are noted.
Recommendations from the evidence base call for:
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Greater clarity on the type of care home where nurses have the greatest impact, i.e. where there are complex healthcare needs.
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Greater clarity on the precise skills and knowledge that nurses are required to have to work effectively in these settings.
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Work to enhance the image and career choices for nurses working in care homes.
These findings and recommendations are central to the current discussions around the role of nursing in care homes through the auspices of the National Care Home Contract with stakeholders including COSLA, SSSC, Scottish Care and the RCN.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 October 2017
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 1 November 2017
To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with independent care home providers about workforce issues.
Answer
Scottish Government officials are in regular dialogue with providers and receive live updates regarding any current issues. Scottish Government officials also hold a National Workforce Planning Group. This is the main stakeholder group driving the health and social care workforce plan and discussing the challenges facing the health and social care workforce both now and going forward into the future.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 October 2017
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 1 November 2017
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the National Care Home Contract.
Answer
The National Care Home Contract defines the terms of local authority placements into private or voluntary sector homes. It is negotiated annually between COSLA, Scottish Care and CCPS.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Friday, 13 October 2017
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Current Status:
Answered by Derek Mackay on 31 October 2017
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-11582 by Derek Mackay on 5 October 2017, what plans it has to phase-out fossil fuel vehicles used in (a) the ministerial car pool, (b) Transport Scotland, and (c) other areas of the Government Car Service.
Answer
Our Programme for Government sets out that we will take the lead in promoting the use of ultralow emission vehicles (ULEVs) and phase out the need for new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2032, well ahead of the 2040 target recently announced by the UK Government.
The Scottish Government’s fleet replacement policy is to consider a replacement when a vehicle has reached 80,000 miles or six years. The final decision will also depend on the condition and history of the vehicle.
When considering vehicles for the fleet, the replacement will be fit for purpose, be ultra-low emission (where practicable) or offer significantly lower emissions (where practicable) than the vehicle being replaced, whilst ensuring best value for money.
This current strategy will allow us to phase out fossil fuelled vehicles as and when vehicles come to the end of their operational life and suitable replacements are available.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 October 2017
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 1 November 2017
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update of the progress being made by the Scottish Growth Scheme.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 1 November 2017
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 September 2017
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 24 October 2017
To ask the Scottish Government what the recruitment process will be for the appointment of a new chief executive for NHS Orkney after the current postholder takes up a position with NHS Forth Valley; by what date the new chief executive will be in post, and whether it can confirm that the person appointed will carry out their role exclusively for NHS Orkney and not work jointly with another NHS board.
Answer
The recruitment of a new Chief Executive is a matter for NHS Orkney as the employer. NHS Orkney is putting in place interim arrangements while proposals for the appointment of a new Chief Executive are developed.
