Committee
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee 27 September 2022
27 Sep 2022 · S6 · Health, Social Care and Sport Committee
Item of business
Winter Planning
Those listening earlier will probably recognise this question, because I put it to the first panel. During the pandemic’s most acute period, we had really good information at national level about services and what patients’ care would look like, and a lot of people valued that. Many will understand why operations have to be postponed, but some constituents feel that information on next steps and the other support that is available while they wait for a new operation date is not what they would like it be. What work is being done at health board level to ensure that patients have information on how to keep themselves well and how to get support while waiting for an operation? I also want to link that to Emma Harper’s earlier question and ask: what communication is being provided on urgent care? I will direct that question to Dr Armstrong, given the size of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.
In the same item of business
The Convener
SNP
Our next item is two evidence sessions on winter planning. In the first session, we will focus on the national health service and social care in Scotland. I ...
Caroline Lamb (Scottish Government)
I am grateful for the opportunity to be here, particularly in person, to update the committee on the actions that we are taking to support our health and soc...
The Convener
SNP
Everything that you said in response to my question contained detail that my colleagues will want to delve into a bit more deeply. I have no further question...
Tess White (North East Scotland) (Con)
Con
I, too, support and say thank you to the exceptional staff who work in the NHS and social care. Ms Lamb, are you nervous that the NHS will not be able to cop...
Caroline Lamb
It would be foolish to be complacent as we go into a difficult winter, but we have been planning intensively with our NHS boards. That is not new. We work al...
Sandesh Gulhane (Glasgow) (Con)
Con
It is important to say to anyone who is watching that, if you are eligible to get a vaccine, please, please go and get one, because it will save your life. ...
Caroline Lamb
I clarify that the £7.5 million that we are investing in Public Health Scotland concerns the work that it is doing on supporting modelling of future waves of...
The Convener
SNP
Some of my colleagues will ask questions specifically on the workforce. That is a good springboard for that conversation later in the session.
Caroline Lamb
I do not want to pre-empt those questions. I will pass to John Burns to say a bit more about our work on unscheduled and urgent care and on improving capacit...
John Burns (Scottish Government)
I highlight four things that we have been working on with our colleagues across the health and care system. The first is continuing to take forward the right...
The Convener
SNP
With that in mind, I will hand over to Emma Harper, who has questions on accident and emergency services.
Emma Harper (South Scotland) (SNP)
SNP
Good morning, everybody. A and E discharges and the four-hour waiting time target are all over the news all the time. I know that looking at what causes thos...
Caroline Lamb
I thank Emma Harper for highlighting that it is not simply about people sitting waiting to be seen. A lot of the long delays relate to people who are, in fac...
John Burns
I absolutely agree with the point that people are being treated; they are receiving treatment while they are in A and E. I also acknowledge the incredible w...
Emma Harper
SNP
Last week, we had a chamber debate about out-of-hours GP services and I quoted some percentages in relation to out-of-hours care reducing the number of hospi...
Caroline Lamb
Yes, that is correct. We need to think about all the aspects of out-of-hours services, encompassing the work that John Burns has already referenced around wh...
John Burns
Out-of-hours is incredibly important as part of our wider urgent care provision. As we have developed the redesign of urgent care and moved forward with flow...
Emma Harper
SNP
I have a final question. Ahead of getting into winter, do you feel that we will be able to reduce the numbers or the waiting times from the current data? Are...
Caroline Lamb
As I said earlier, I would not be complacent about the challenges that face us. However, we are working very hard with our colleagues in the NHS and in the H...
Tess White
Con
I have a question for Alex McMahon. NHS Forth Valley has been very much in the spotlight, sadly, because of shocking A and E statistics. However, yesterday, ...
Alex McMahon (Scottish Government)
I will pick up on some of Caroline Lamb’s points in relation to the workforce. Caroline mentioned the retire and return policy—that is a once for Scotland p...
Tess White
Con
That is very helpful.
The Convener
SNP
I will bring in James Dornan.
James Dornan
SNP
As someone who, unfortunately, has been a user of the health service quite a lot over the past 12 months—and continues to be—I will start by saying what a gr...
The Convener
SNP
I put that question to Caroline Lamb.
Caroline Lamb
It is good to hear your personal reflections on your experience of the NHS. I certainly echo your views on the care, compassion and commitment that I see fro...
Alex McMahon
As Caroline Lamb said, there is value in having a target, but it must be proportionate. As she said, any clinician would probably say that the A and E target...
The Convener
SNP
I will bring in Paul O’Kane, to be followed by David Torrance. I think that Paul’s connection might have frozen, so I will come back to him.
Paul O’Kane (West Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
I appreciate what colleagues are saying about their anecdotal—Inaudible.
The Convener
SNP
I am sorry, Paul—try to ask your question and we will see whether we have still got you.