Chamber
Plenary, 26 Mar 2008
26 Mar 2008 · S3 · Plenary
Item of business
Health Care Associated Infection
I agree with Ross Finnie's suggestion that there is likely to be near unanimity on this vital issue.
I welcome the cabinet secretary's announcements about the multimillion pound investments and wish her well. However, I am having some difficulty in keeping track of the various amounts of money that she is investing. Perhaps she will provide us with an overview of the investments when she winds up the debate.
I am sure that all politicians in the land will share the collective ambition that we express today.
In the time that I have been an MSP, my most harrowing and challenging case has involved one of my elderly constituents whose family has been decimated in four years. First, his wife died from MRSA, then his son died from the lack of appropriate mental health support and then his other son died of a heart condition. All of those deaths could have been avoided, but he has been left alone without anyone in the world. As if that were not bad enough, my constituent has had to cope with the withdrawal of all his advocacy support because of failures over the period in which he tried to complain and have his concerns addressed.
At a time when patients are vulnerable because they have just been diagnosed with a serious illness, the last thing that they should be doing is fretting. They need to have complete trust in the hospital where they are being treated and in the people who are delivering their care. However, one thing that causes patients great concern is the fear that their recovery will be hampered because their admission to hospital will lead them to contract a life-threatening superbug infection. Having had two major operations, I know that it is more than enough to have to cope with the worry of the surgery, without having to worry about further infection challenges. The Cabinet's commitment to screening is to be warmly welcomed.
NHS Quality Improvement Scotland raised many issues in the work that it undertook in 2003, the most important of which were about the inadequacy of monitoring, reviewing and evaluating policies on hospital-acquired infections. That thread applies throughout a number of health boards. Perhaps the cabinet secretary will discuss that issue further with NHS QIS and encourage it to revisit its 2003 investigations and update its work on this vital matter.
I was going to raise a number of other points, but I will not do so, because Ian McKee covered them adequately.
I share Ross Finnie's view. International experts paid tribute to the previous Labour and Liberal Democrat coalition when it produced its model for tackling hospital-acquired infections with a task force in 2003. At that time, an expert said:
"I am very impressed by the work of the HAI Task Force which is addressing this problem in a comprehensive manner … Reducing the levels of infection, including MRSA, is a major challenge for all countries. As Scotland points out, infection control is everybody's business, and the strategy followed by Scotland is an excellent model for others to look to."
That was said by Professor Didier Pittet. I say to Ross Finnie that I hope that I got the pronunciation right; I apologise if I did not. Professor Pittet is the World Health Organization's leading expert on MRSA, and those were his comments on the approach of Labour and the Liberal Democrats to controlling hospital-acquired infections.
I urge Nicola Sturgeon to take on board Ian McKee's points. Instead of repeating them, I will make some points that he might have missed. We can perhaps learn some lessons by looking south. In February 2008, a new antibiotics campaign was launched to remind the public, general practitioners and other doctors about the use of antibiotics. I do not remember whether the cabinet secretary mentioned that. If she did, I apologise, but it is important.
I welcome the cabinet secretary's announcements about the multimillion pound investments and wish her well. However, I am having some difficulty in keeping track of the various amounts of money that she is investing. Perhaps she will provide us with an overview of the investments when she winds up the debate.
I am sure that all politicians in the land will share the collective ambition that we express today.
In the time that I have been an MSP, my most harrowing and challenging case has involved one of my elderly constituents whose family has been decimated in four years. First, his wife died from MRSA, then his son died from the lack of appropriate mental health support and then his other son died of a heart condition. All of those deaths could have been avoided, but he has been left alone without anyone in the world. As if that were not bad enough, my constituent has had to cope with the withdrawal of all his advocacy support because of failures over the period in which he tried to complain and have his concerns addressed.
At a time when patients are vulnerable because they have just been diagnosed with a serious illness, the last thing that they should be doing is fretting. They need to have complete trust in the hospital where they are being treated and in the people who are delivering their care. However, one thing that causes patients great concern is the fear that their recovery will be hampered because their admission to hospital will lead them to contract a life-threatening superbug infection. Having had two major operations, I know that it is more than enough to have to cope with the worry of the surgery, without having to worry about further infection challenges. The Cabinet's commitment to screening is to be warmly welcomed.
NHS Quality Improvement Scotland raised many issues in the work that it undertook in 2003, the most important of which were about the inadequacy of monitoring, reviewing and evaluating policies on hospital-acquired infections. That thread applies throughout a number of health boards. Perhaps the cabinet secretary will discuss that issue further with NHS QIS and encourage it to revisit its 2003 investigations and update its work on this vital matter.
I was going to raise a number of other points, but I will not do so, because Ian McKee covered them adequately.
I share Ross Finnie's view. International experts paid tribute to the previous Labour and Liberal Democrat coalition when it produced its model for tackling hospital-acquired infections with a task force in 2003. At that time, an expert said:
"I am very impressed by the work of the HAI Task Force which is addressing this problem in a comprehensive manner … Reducing the levels of infection, including MRSA, is a major challenge for all countries. As Scotland points out, infection control is everybody's business, and the strategy followed by Scotland is an excellent model for others to look to."
That was said by Professor Didier Pittet. I say to Ross Finnie that I hope that I got the pronunciation right; I apologise if I did not. Professor Pittet is the World Health Organization's leading expert on MRSA, and those were his comments on the approach of Labour and the Liberal Democrats to controlling hospital-acquired infections.
I urge Nicola Sturgeon to take on board Ian McKee's points. Instead of repeating them, I will make some points that he might have missed. We can perhaps learn some lessons by looking south. In February 2008, a new antibiotics campaign was launched to remind the public, general practitioners and other doctors about the use of antibiotics. I do not remember whether the cabinet secretary mentioned that. If she did, I apologise, but it is important.
In the same item of business
The Presiding Officer (Alex Fergusson):
NPA
The next item of business is a debate on motion S3M-1621, in the name of Nicola Sturgeon, on the health care associated infection task force.
The Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing (Nicola Sturgeon):
SNP
I am pleased to open the debate and to present our ambitious new plans for tackling health care associated infection in Scotland during the next three years ...
Margaret Curran (Glasgow Baillieston) (Lab):
Lab
I emphasise how much we in the Labour Party welcome the debate. We acknowledge that our amendment will be accepted. I associate myself with many of the point...
Nicola Sturgeon:
SNP
I hope that I can reassure Margaret Curran that the investment that we have set aside for the next three years is 260 per cent higher than the investment ove...
Margaret Curran:
Lab
I will take that—graciously, I hope—as an indication of the cabinet secretary's commitment. However, as I understand it, England has prioritised the issue, a...
Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con):
Con
It is always good to follow the gracious Margaret Curran. The Conservatives welcome the debate on health care associated infection. We also welcome the inves...
Ross Finnie (West of Scotland) (LD):
LD
I do not discern—and I suspect that, by the end of the debate, I will not discern—any disagreement with the proposition that, because health care associated ...
Nicola Sturgeon:
SNP
I am pleased to intervene on that very serious point. I hope that the member will take some reassurance from my pronunciation of "coherence" during my speech...
Ross Finnie:
LD
I am greatly comforted. We must maintain standards in the chamber.Health care associated infection is a serious issue, and I welcome the debate. Margaret Cur...
Ian McKee (Lothians) (SNP):
SNP
We have heard a lot—and I am confident that we will hear a lot more as the debate progresses—about the virtues of cleanliness in preventing health care assoc...
Helen Eadie (Dunfermline East) (Lab):
Lab
I agree with Ross Finnie's suggestion that there is likely to be near unanimity on this vital issue. I welcome the cabinet secretary's announcements about th...
Nicola Sturgeon:
SNP
I am always happy to consider lessons from elsewhere, and I appreciate Helen Eadie's point, but I remind her that I mentioned our policy, which I launched ea...
Helen Eadie:
Lab
I am sorry that the cabinet secretary feels aggrieved, but if she had been listening she would know that I congratulated the Government on its screening init...
Michael Matheson (Falkirk West) (SNP):
SNP
I welcome the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing's statement. In the spirit of consensus, I acknowledge the work that the previous Labour and Liberal...
Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab):
Lab
I welcome the commitment that the cabinet secretary has made and the opportunity that the debate gives us to consider how we can reduce the risk of contracti...
Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con):
Con
This debate on dealing with health care associated infections is extremely important. However, I cannot help feeling sad that the reputation of a health serv...
James Kelly (Glasgow Rutherglen) (Lab):
Lab
I welcome the opportunity to take part in this afternoon's debate on health care associated infections. I endorse the cabinet secretary's announcement and, o...
Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP):
SNP
The cabinet secretary is to be congratulated on this initiative. As the Labour amendment states, the previous Government is to be commended for the establish...
Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab):
Lab
Many members have talked about consensus, but consensus does not make the debate any less important—we should debate such issues.The cabinet secretary mentio...
Nicola Sturgeon:
SNP
Rhoda Grant makes an important point. It may be of interest to her and other members to know that we are working with the trade unions on a national uniform ...
Rhoda Grant:
Lab
Yes. I am grateful to the cabinet secretary for that information. The BMA position shows that doctors have the will and wish to see the proposal progressed.W...
Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD):
LD
I agree with nearly everything that has been said in this worthwhile debate. The unanimity of the message will be encouraging to patients and health professi...
Jackson Carlaw (West of Scotland) (Con):
Con
We welcome all that Nicola Sturgeon has said today in her speech and her interventions, including the MRSA pilot that she announced, in what has been a usefu...
Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab):
Lab
As all other members who have spoken have said, the debate has been consensual, informed and of a high standard. As Jamie Stone said, that should give comfor...
Nanette Milne:
Con
My point was that it does not matter who actually does the cleaning. What is important is the supervision of a high standard of cleaning.
Dr Simpson:
Lab
I hate to say this, but I could tell Nanette Milne numerous stories of when contract cleaners have come in, done their bit and gone away, leaving the questio...
The Minister for Public Health (Shona Robison):
SNP
I have listened with interest to this constructive, stimulating and wide-ranging debate, which has served as a stark reminder that the Scottish Government an...