Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 24 June 2021
24 Jun 2021 · S6 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Cervical Screening
This is an extremely serious situation, and our thoughts are with the women who have been affected. The truth is that we do not yet know the full scale of the error; it could impact on many more women than the 220 excluded from the screening programme since 1997. It is critical that women are contacted urgently and offered information and support.
Why was the issue not picked up by audits of the screening programme in the past? When will all the women affected be not only identified but seen by a clinician? Will there be additional specialist clinics in every health board area?
The minister will be aware of the concerns about capacity and a significant backlog in screening, with something like 180,000 tests delayed because of the pandemic and delays of six months or more for those who have been screened and need treatment. Therefore, what additional resources will be provided—urgently—to cope with the serious situation that we are discussing as well as to catch up with the backlog?
In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Annabelle Ewing)
SNP
The next item of business is a statement by Maree Todd on cervical screening. The minister will take questions at the end of her statement, so there should b...
The Minister for Public Health, Women’s Health and Sport (Maree Todd)
SNP
I regret that I am here to inform Parliament of a serious adverse event in the Scottish cervical screening programme. In December 2020, a national health ser...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
SNP
The minister will now take questions on the issues raised in her statement. I intend to allow around 20 minutes for questions, after which we will have to mo...
Annie Wells (Glasgow) (Con)
Con
I thank the minister for her statement. She has shared deeply distressing news with the Parliament. My heart goes out to the family of the woman who has trag...
Maree Todd
SNP
The same adverse event management team that oversaw the review of the post-1997 group will continue to oversee the review into those who had their subtotal h...
Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab)
Lab
This is an extremely serious situation, and our thoughts are with the women who have been affected. The truth is that we do not yet know the full scale of th...
Maree Todd
SNP
As I said in my statement, around 500 people—I think that it is 434—have been contacted this week. However, because of the range of errors involved, we think...
Gillian Martin (Aberdeenshire East) (SNP)
SNP
Jackie Baillie raised some points that I also want to mention; I will dig a little bit deeper. The situation is clearly worrying for the women affected and t...
Maree Todd
SNP
The women who have been wrongly excluded have been contacted by letter. Those letters went out on Tuesday this week and so should have arrived yesterday or t...
Sandesh Gulhane (Glasgow) (Con)
Con
I declare an interest as a practising doctor. My thoughts and prayers go out to the women and their families who have been affected by this terrible error. ...
Maree Todd
SNP
As might be expected, we have looked closely at the points where the errors appear to have occurred, and there are potentially four such points. For some wom...
Emma Harper (South Scotland) (SNP)
SNP
There are many reasons why women might be reluctant to attend their screening test. Those range from difficulties in attending or being examined due to physi...
Maree Todd
SNP
Those are complex issues. I am mindful that there is not a single solution, but I agree that those are important matters to tackle. I will outline some of th...
Carol Mochan (South Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
This incident is obviously a serious failure that must not be allowed to happen again. I ask my question on behalf of women who had subtotal hysterectomies b...
Maree Todd
SNP
I can assure the member that we are working as fast as we can through those records to identify women who have been wrongly excluded pre-1997. I am afraid th...
Kenneth Gibson (Cunninghame North) (SNP)
SNP
Human papillomavirus is known to cause 99 per cent of all cervical cancers, as well as cases of head, neck and anogenital cancers, so an HPV vaccination prog...
Maree Todd
SNP
I am afraid that I do not have that data in front of me. I am willing to write to the member to update him on that issue as soon as I can get my hands on tho...
Gillian Mackay (Central Scotland) (Green)
Green
I, too, extend my sympathies to all of those have been affected and their families. The minister states that the risk of cervical cancer is low and that cer...
Maree Todd
SNP
Undoubtedly, we have to ensure that women have confidence in the system. As members have said, it is an extremely effective way of preventing cancer—around 5...
Christine Grahame (Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale) (SNP)
SNP
I note from the minister’s statement that some of the women are now beyond the eligibility age for screening, which I think is 64. Given that life expectancy...
Maree Todd
SNP
At present, screening can extend up to age 70 for those who have had a non-routine result that requires follow-up or treatment, so those high-risk women are ...
Craig Hoy (South Scotland) (Con)
Con
I extend my condolences and thoughts to the women and their families who have been affected and I recognise that, for many people, the situation will be a so...
Maree Todd
SNP
Four health boards have requested funding to provide additional clinics: Lanarkshire, £28,000; Lothian, £8,098; Greater Glasgow and Clyde, £5,000; and Fife, ...
Alex Cole-Hamilton (Edinburgh Western) (LD)
LD
The news that we have heard will be deeply alarming to many women, and it is a tragic reminder of the importance of robust screening programmes. If, as the m...
Maree Todd
SNP
As I explained, with regard to the invasive cancer audits, new national methodology was introduced in 2014, and health boards were doing audits prior to that...
Jackie Dunbar (Aberdeen Donside) (SNP)
SNP
I, too, extend my sympathies to all the women affected. Worrying research conducted by Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust has shown that only half of the women who h...
Maree Todd
SNP
I agree with the member that it is vitally important to raise awareness of what HPV is and what it means to have HPV. Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust has told us ...
Miles Briggs (Lothian) (Con)
Con
It is, indeed, a deeply concerning statement. I will ask about two points. When were the Scottish ministers first made aware of this serious adverse event? G...
Maree Todd
SNP
We have worked really hard. As I said in a previous answer, we were first made aware of this on 9 March 2021. Officials were made aware and ministers were al...
Paul O’Kane (West Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
The situation is, indeed, deeply concerning. Our thoughts are with all the women affected. I appreciate what the minister has said about funding for the Jo’s...