Hansard

The Convener: SNP

Agenda item 3 is a briefing from the Scottish public services ombudsman. I welcome Professor Alice Brown to the committee. I also welcome Eric Drake, the dep...

Professor Alice Brown (Scottish Public Services Ombudsman):

Eric Drake and I welcome the opportunity to speak to the committee today. We offered to do so because I thought that it would be helpful if we were able to e...

Eric Drake (Scottish Public Services Ombudsman):

As Alice Brown said, there are a number of issues that we can consider and some that we cannot. The essential definition of our jurisdiction is that we look ...

Professor Brown:

It is worth stressing that, in relation to most cases that come to us, we spend a lot of time at the beginning giving people advice about what they need to d...

The Convener: SNP

Thank you. We have about 10 minutes to deal with members' questions. I ask members to keep them as brief as possible. If the answers are brief, too, we will ...

Kate Maclean (Dundee West) (Lab): Lab

I think that Eric Drake spoke about failure to provide a service as opposed to failure in the service that is provided. Can you please give an example of wha...

Eric Drake:

As I said, the legislation talks about the"failure of the authority to provide a service which it was a function of the authority to provide."The example tha...

Kate Maclean: Lab

So, it would be up to an individual's interpretation of what is meant by a statutory service. You also said that you could not consider properly made decisio...

Eric Drake:

Yes. For example, some years ago, the English health ombudsman examined a case in which a chap who had serious brain injuries did not need hospital care any ...

Kate Maclean: Lab

So, the matter is about the service that is provided, not about where or how it is provided.

Eric Drake:

Yes. It is about whether a service should be provided at all.

Mr Davidson: Con

I agree that there is a need for a route map of the NHS for the public to use. We all probably have queries about what that would do. However, health boards ...

Professor Brown:

Yes—that was the purpose of the roadshow events. We have been round all 15 health board regions and have talked through many such matters. My impression is t...

Mr Davidson: Con

Will you set a timescale in which people can expect the NHS to deal with the process?

Professor Brown:

Setting the timescale for the NHS is less clear cut; we tend instead to issue good practice guidance on the process. That said, it is perhaps more defined in...

Janis Hughes (Glasgow Rutherglen) (Lab): Lab

People often come to MSPs after they have complained to a consultant and received a reply, after which the matter has not been taken further. What would you ...

Professor Brown:

Members of the public can get very confused about whether they have exhausted a body's complaints process. Before I answer the question, I point out that we ...

Janis Hughes: Lab

You said that you cannot overturn a properly made decision. However, if such a decision has not been properly made and you are upholding a complaint, what po...

Professor Brown:

We can recommend that the body in question offer some form of redress. I point out that some areas are easier than others in that respect. Health is the most...

Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): LD

I want to pursue an example of that. The 19th report in your submission centres on the removal of a patient from a GP list, and you say in your recommended r...

Eric Drake:

A special report might be made to Parliament but, in this case, the local health board has had further discussions with the GPs concerned, who have now apolo...

Mike Rumbles: LD

So you have teeth.David Davidson asked about reasonable time for a health board to complete its investigations, including the independent review. I am not re...

Professor Brown:

The independent review stage is being removed. However, if we feel that there has been undue delay, we might intervene earlier.When someone has not exhausted...

Mike Rumbles: LD

I will be in touch.

Professor Brown:

I am sure that you will.

Shona Robison (Dundee East) (SNP): SNP

Having sat with a lady who had followed an exhausting complaints process in the health service, I think that it is good that the complaints procedure will be...

Professor Brown:

Eric Drake can supplement any points that I make. Informing the public is a big challenge for us, because we need to inform them about a lot. We will have in...

Eric Drake:

In examining the NHS internal complaints procedure, the Scottish Executive has sensibly obtained outside help to draft leaflets in plain English, so that the...

Dr Jean Turner (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (Ind): Ind

How can you help people who make a complaint while having treatment but who do not want to take it too far? Having highlighted their need or asserted themsel...

The Convener: SNP

That probably comes under the heading "specific". You might not want to comment on that, in case that particular case comes up.