‘It’s OK to Ask’ – supporting patients in Scotland to ask the right questions about their healthcare
Through the ‘It’s OK to Ask’ campaign, people in Scotland are being encouraged to ask their healthcare providers more questions about their treatment and be more involved in decisions around their care.
The campaign aims to break down communication barriers and create open, positive conversations to ensure patients have full information on the options available for their care and treatment.
Patients are being asked to consider four key questions when they next attend an appointment, or discuss their care with a healthcare professional:
What are the benefits of my treatment?
What are the risks of my treatment?
Any alternative treatments I can try?
What if I do nothing?
John McAnaw, Associate Clinical Director at NHS 24 said: ‘The ‘It’s OK to Ask’ campaign was designed to help people feel empowered to ask for more information about their care during discussions with health professionals.
‘We understand it can sometimes feel intimidating or even scary to ask for more information when you are in a healthcare setting, but our healthcare colleagues throughout the NHS will be delighted to help with any questions you may have.
‘By feeling supported and encouraged to freely ask questions and get more advice on the available options, we hope that more patients feel involved in decisions about their care and treatment, and they make more educated, informed choices about what is right for them.’
The campaign is being promoted through digital advertising and is supported by NHS Scotland. More information, including a free-to-download patient leaflet and translations into other languages, can be found on
If you are aged 50 to 64 with no additional risk factors, please wait to be contacted about your winter vaccination appointment. The flu and COVID-19 vaccines are being given to those most at risk first.
Following on from the previous advice on which vaccines should be used in this year’s autumn booster programme, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has updated its published advice to include an additional bivalent vaccine now approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
Studies indicate the Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent vaccine produces a marginally higher immune response against some variants than the Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA Original ‘wild-type’ vaccine. The clinical relevance of these small differences is uncertain.
‘Bivalent’ vaccines have been developed by global manufacturers since the emergence and dominance of the Omicron variant. These vaccines are targeted against antigens (substances that induce an immune response) from 2 different COVID-19 strains, or variants.
All of the available booster vaccines offer very good protection against severe illness from COVID-19. As more vaccines continue to be developed, the committee will consider their use in the autumn programme.
Professor Wei Shen Lim, Chair of COVID-19 immunisation on the JCVI, said: “It is very encouraging that more vaccines continue to become available and we now have another option to add to the vaccines already advised for the autumn booster campaign.
“Winter is typically the time of greatest threat from respiratory infections. We strongly encourage everyone who is eligible to have their booster vaccine this autumn when it is offered. This is our best defence against becoming severely ill from COVID-19.”
Pfizer/BioNTech bivalent COVID-19 booster approved by UK medicines regulator
A second, “bivalent” vaccine was yesterday approved as a booster by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) after it was found to meet the UK regulator’s standards of safety, quality and effectiveness.
The updated booster vaccine made by Pfizer/BioNTech, targeting two coronavirus variants, has been approved for use in individuals aged 12 years and above. This decision has been endorsed by the Commission on Human Medicines, after a careful review of the evidence.
In each dose of the booster vaccine, ‘Comirnaty bivalent Original/Omicron’, half of the vaccine (15 micrograms) targets the original virus strain and the other half (15 micrograms) targets Omicron (BA.1).
The MHRA’s decision is based on data from a clinical trial which showed that a booster dose with the bivalent Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine triggers a strong immune response against both Omicron and the original strain. Safety monitoring showed that the side effects observed were the same as those seen for the original Pfizer/BioNTech booster dose and were typically mild and self-resolving, and no new serious safety concerns were identified.
Dr June Raine, MHRA Chief Executive said: I am pleased to announce that we now have a second approved vaccine for the UK Autumn booster programme. The clinical trial of the Pfizer/BioNTech bivalent vaccine showed a strong immune response against the Omicron BA.1 variant as well as the original strain.
“Bivalent vaccines are helping us to meet the challenge of an ever-evolving virus, to help protect people against COVID-19 variants.
“We have in place a comprehensive safety surveillance strategy for all UK-approved COVID-19 vaccines, and this will include the updated booster we approved today.”
Professor Sir Munir Pirmohamed, Chair of the Commission on Human Medicines said: “Following an independent review of the safety, quality and effectiveness of the vaccine, the Commission on Human Medicines and its COVID-19 Vaccines Expert Working Group supports the MHRA’s decision.
“As with any medicinal product, including vaccines, it is important to continually monitor effectiveness and safety when it is deployed, and we have the relevant processes and expertise in this country to do that.
“The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) will advise on how this vaccine should be offered as part of the deployment programme.”
A sister’s quick thinking saved the life of a student who had fallen ill with meningitis, when she took her straight to A&E on their way home from university.
Ashleigh Denton was 18 and in her first year at the University of the West of England in Bristol when she became ill with a headache and flu-like symptoms on a night out. The following day her sister Sophie drove from Oxfordshire to collect her but, halfway home, went straight to Swindon A&E as Ashleigh’s condition suddenly worsened.
Doctors say her fast response that day saved Ashleigh’s life.
“If my sister had tried to take me to Oxford rather than Swindon – less than an hour down the road – doctors said I would have died,”Ashleigh said. “It would have been too late.”
Now Ashleigh, 29, is telling her story to raise awareness of meningitis and the importance of looking out for your friends and taking quick action if the disease is suspected, as she spearheads charity Meningitis Now’s ‘Look out for your mates’ student campaign, which launches today.
The campaign is timed to coincide with the announcement of A-level results as thousands of young people contemplate their future. Meningitis Now is concerned that the combination of new-found social freedoms, the desire of young people to mix in large groups and a move to campus-based accommodation for students, will present the ideal opportunity for infectious diseases to spread, putting young people at a higher risk of meningitis.
“If you’re at university and you or one of your friends is unwell or acting out of character and you’re not sure if it’s something small or serious, get things checked out,”Ashleigh added. “Don’t be afraid to go to hospital – meningitis can develop so quickly, from just having a headache to being at death’s door.”
“It is so important to have your symptoms checked as soon as possible if you are concerned.”
Ashleigh, from Bicester in Oxfordshire, initially thought she was getting a cold. “I started to get a headache, but I wasn’t worried, so I went out with my friends as planned.
“Within a couple of hours my behaviour had changed – I was agitated and emotional – and this is one of the biggest things I tell people. It’s not the physical symptoms that I remember the most, but my behaviour.”
Ashleigh left the club and two girls who were going to the same place as her shared a taxi home. “They noticed I was unwell and even offered for me to stay at theirs, but I declined as I just wanted my bed,” she said.
“The next day I woke up, still with a headache, and assumed I was just hungover. As the day went on I really didn’t feel right. I phoned my mum to tell her and that I was going to sleep for a bit, but I was crying and she knew something wasn’t right.
“She spoke to my sister, who phoned me and asked if I wanted her to pick me up and take me home. I initially said ‘no’ but eventually agreed and she came from Oxford to Bristol to get me.
“In the car home my symptoms got worse very quickly. My head was so sore, I couldn’t open my eyes, my neck stiffened, I was retching, and I just knew something was seriously wrong.
“Just at the right time my sister saw a sign for the hospital in Swindon and took me straight there.
“In A&E I remember struggling to breathe, so I just stopped as it felt like the easier option. My sister shook me and I came to and started breathing again, but it wasn’t long before I stopped. My sister pressed the panic button and within seconds a team rushed in and carried me to resus.
“I am told I became aggressive, so I was sedated and admitted to ITU.
“During this time I was given a CT scan and a lumbar puncture, which confirmed I had Group B meningococcal meningitis and septicaemia.
“I had developed a rash but not until I got to hospital. What most people don’t realise is that the rash is not an early symptom and if you have one, you are in the advanced stages of meningitis.”
Ashleigh’s family was told there was a one in three chance that she would wake up blind, deaf or brain damaged.
“But fortunately I woke up two days after arriving at hospital and the first thing I said was ‘I want my breakfast’.Somehow, before I was even told, I knew I had meningitis.
“I was in hospital for a week and unable to walk or get out of bed by myself for the first few days. What I didn’t realise at the time was that my brain was muddled as a result of the infection and would be for a few months. I just had no awareness of this until a family member asked my mum if I was making any sense a few weeks after I’d got home.”
Fortunately, despite not being her usual self for three months and struggling with fatigue, Ashleigh went on to make a good recovery, even returning to university for her exams in August, five months after she first became ill.
“I am forever thankful for my family, and the doctors and nurses at Great Western Hospital in Swindon, for saving my life.”
Ryan Bresnahan wasn’t so lucky, His mum, Michelle, who set up the Bristol-based charity, a Life for a Cure, following Ryan’s death from meningitis in 2010, has been campaigning tirelessly to raise awareness of the symptoms of the disease and funds for research.
Ryan was a fit and healthy 16-year-old when he was tragically struck down by Meningitis B within an hour of first feeling ill.
Michelle said: “I know only too well how devastating this disease can be and have seen the worst it can do, destroying young lives and tearing apart those who remain.
“No-one should be left counting the cost of making the wrong assumption – meningitis can affect anyone at any time but we need to highlight that teenagers and young people are the second most at risk group of contracting the disease, after babies and toddlers.”
Meningitis Now chief executive, Dr Tom Nutt, said:“Research has shown that up to a quarter of 15 to 24-year-olds carry the bacteria that cause meningococcal meningitis and septicaemia in the back of their throats compared to one in 10 of the general population.
“Whilst many young people will have been vaccinated against MenACWY, which protects against four strains of meningococcal meningitis, at school, we estimate that up to half a million under-25s may have missed this important vaccination. If that’s you – contact your GP and see if you can get up to date with your vaccinations.
“And very few young people will have been vaccinated against MenB, which is the strain Ashleigh and Ryan had and that causes the most cases of bacterial meningitis in the UK.
“Common complaints such as a hangover and Freshers’ Flu are often given as reasons for a person not feeling too well – but we are asking young people not to simply assume this is the case. A headache and fever are also common signs of meningitis, which is why it is so important that young people should learn the signs and symptoms of the disease, look out for themselves and their mates and seek medical help straight away if they feel unwell.”
The early signs and symptoms of meningitis and septicaemia can be similar to ‘flu, tummy bug or a hangover and include fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, muscle pain, stomach cramps and fever with cold hands and feet.
More specific signs and symptoms include fever with cold hands and feet, drowsiness, confusion, pale blotchy skin, stiff neck, dislike of bright lights and a rash which doesn’t fade under pressure.
Meningitis Now has free information for parents and students, including leaflets, signs and symptoms cards and fridge magnets – all of which contain lifesaving information.
NHS Lothian’s Community Vaccination Team has administered an incredible 5,200 HPV vaccinations in schools across Edinburgh and the Lothians this past month, even with a break over the Easter holidays.
Cervical cancer is the most common cancer in women under 35 and HPV is the main cause. A 2018 Scottish study showed that the vaccine has reduced pre-cancerous cervical disease in 20-year-old women by up to 71%.
The prevalence of certain HPV types in 16- to 18-year-old women in England, who were offered vaccination at 12 to 13, was found to have reduced from 15% before the vaccination programme to less than 2% in 2018.
The vaccination also provides vital protection against genital warts and anogenital cancers in both boys and girls. Consent forms were provided to schools earlier this year. Consent is provided for the vaccination course and, once given, covers your child for both doses.
The team began vaccinating at the beginning of April and this year’s programme runs until the end of June. If your child’s form was misplaced or lost, you can contact the school’s office to get another.
If your child has any questions or concerns, they are encouraged to speak to our vaccinators.
Scottish health boards have recruited more than 1,000 additional healthcare support staff and almost 200 registered nurses from overseas to help address the unprecedented challenges facing the NHS.
The support staff recruitment drive, backed by £15 million, was launched by Health Secretary Humza Yousaf last October. The new employees will be working in a variety of roles, both in acute hospitals and in community health teams.
Under a separate £4.5 million initiative, offers of employment have been signed with 191 nurses from countries including India and the Philippines, with some already arrived and in posts in hospitals across the country, while agreements are in place with recruitment agencies for a further 203. The figure is likely to increase significantly over the coming months as boards take advantage of new infrastructure for employing qualified international staff.
All international recruitment is in line with the Scottish Code of Practice for health and social care personnel, which demonstrates Scotland’s commitment to ethical recruitment to protect the healthcare systems of developing countries.
Health and Social Care Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “The pandemic has been the biggest shock our NHS has faced in its 73 year existence. To help deal with Winter pressures and pressure brought on by the current Covid wave we are expanding and investing in our NHS workforce.
“Our hardworking and compassionate health and social care staff have been on the frontline of patient care throughout the pandemic and I am incredibly grateful to them all.
“In October, we set ambitious targets to boost the number of health care support staff and step up international nurse recruitment. I am delighted with the success of the recruitment campaigns and seeing the new staff already providing frontline patient care.
“Scotland has the best paid NHS staff in the UK and record workforce levels, with more than 155,000 whole time equivalent (WTE) staff now working in the service. We are determined to continue this progress as we recover from the pandemic.
“Our National Workforce Strategy for Health and Social Care commits to understanding how we can achieve a more sustainable, skilled workforce which makes careers in health and social care – at all levels – more attractive.”
Scotland sends £2.9 million of urgently needed items
Scotland is sending critical medical supplies and equipment to help Ukraine following the illegal invasion by Russia.
Over 500,000 emergency items valued at about £2.9 million, including hypodermic needles and oxygen masks are being donated by NHS Scotland.
An initial donation will be flown from Stansted Airport in Essex to Poland tomorrow (Thursday) for onward transport to Ukraine and includes wound dressings and bandages. These supplies are urgently needed by the Ukrainian Government.
The medical aid is in addition to £4 million of humanitarian assistance for Ukraine announced by the Scottish Government on Monday, which will help provide basic support such as shelter, water and sanitation.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon visited the NHS equipment storage facility in Motherwell to see the supplies being loaded. She said: “Scotland stands in solidarity with the people of Ukraine and we are ready to provide whatever support we can in their hour of need.
“The Ukrainian Government has requested critical medical assistance and I am proud of our NHS and all those who have worked tirelessly in recent days to make this initial consignment possible. We will deliver the rest of the supplies as quickly as we can.
“Scotland has strong links with Ukraine – Edinburgh is twinned with Kyiv and many Ukrainians have chosen our country as their home – and we will continue to provide practical help as it faces Russia’s unprovoked and illegal aggression.”
NHS National Services Scotland Chief Executive Mary Morgan said: “We are all very saddened by what is happening in Ukraine and our thoughts are with all those affected.
“Colleagues across NHS National Services Scotland, quickly mobilised to compile this shipment of necessary medical equipment which will go towards supporting the people of Ukraine, and we as an organisation will do whatever we can to support this period of uncertainty.
“Time is of the essence in this these situations, and thanks goes to the NHS teams for a fantastic effort in the coordination of this effort to support the humanitarian effort of Ukraine.”
The Scottish Government must focus on transforming health and social care services to address the growing cost of the NHS and its recovery from Covid-19.
Improving the NHS will be very difficult against the competing demands of the pandemic and an increasing number of other policy initiatives, including plans for a National Care Service.
The health service in Scotland is on an emergency footing and remains under severe pressure. There is a growing backlog of patients waiting much longer for treatment because of the response needed to Covid-19. That has made workforce planning and delivering on ambitious recruitment plans all the more important. But the Scottish Government has historically struggled to recruit enough people with the right skills.
The NHS’s ability to plan remains hindered by a lack of robust and reliable data, including workforce, primary care, community, social care, and health inequalities data.
Meanwhile the pandemic has increased the fiscal pressures on the NHS, which remains financially unsustainable. This is despite the Scottish Government allocating £2.9 billion for pandemic-related costs in 2020/21 and committing more funding in 2021/22 and beyond.
Stephen Boyle, Auditor General for Scotland, said: “Reforming the NHS is key to the Scottish Government’s pandemic recovery plan and needs to remain a priority. Putting Covid costs to one side, health spending is rising every year, meaning less money for other public services.
“There’s now a clear opportunity to do things differently by building on the innovation and collaboration we’ve seen across the NHS in the last few years.
“For that to happen, our leaders must take the public with them and involve them in the shift from care being delivered in hospitals to much closer to people’s homes. But better-informed policy decisions and services won’t be possible without better collection and use of data.”
The latest weekly update of Emergency Department performance figures for Scotland show:
There were 21,163 attendances at A&E services in NHS Scotland.
67.4% of attendances at A&E services were seen and resulted in a subsequent admission, transfer or discharge within 4 hours.
2,079 patients spent more than 8 hours in an A&E department.
690 patients spent more than 12 hours in an A&E department.
This data shows the worst weekly four-hour performance since records began. The highest number of (weekly) eight hour waits since records began, and the highest number of (weekly) 12-hour waits since records began.
More than one in eight patients were delayed in an Emergency Department by eight hours or more.
Responding to this data, Dr John Thomson, Vice President of the Royal College Emergency Medicine, Scotland, said: “This data is deeply concerning and distressing. More than one in eight patients have been delayed by eight hours or more; this is shocking.
The health service is in the middle of a serious crisis. Staff are working exceptionally hard but are burnt out and overwhelmed and face moral injury on every shift.
Patient safety is frequently compromised. We know long waiting times increase the risk of death and patient harm. The exit block that exists in our Emergency Departments which prevents patients moving in a safe, timely manner to an appropriate ward is worsening, causing even more harm to our patients.
“It is a critical time for the health service, and we must see a vision for the future. The government must acknowledge the shortfall in staff and beds as the root of this crisis, and this must lead to a commitment to publish a long-term workforce plan that includes measures to retain existing staff who may be thinking of leaving our NHS following this exceptionally challenging period.
“The government must also commit to opening 1,000 more acute beds across Boards in Scotland, which will promote timely patient flow through the hospital. Lastly, a key cause of exit block are the patients who remain in hospital when they no longer require ongoing Hospital care.
“The ongoing crisis in social care means patients are unable to be discharged home following the completion of their treatment. It is vital social care is resourced and adequately staffed to support the most vulnerable patients in their return to the community.”
Measures covering indoor events and hospitality to be reviewed in one week
Large outdoor events can resume without physical distancing or capacity limits from 00:01 on Monday 17 January, following a review of all measures in place to limit the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).
To support the lifting of capacity limits on outdoor events, COVID certification will remain for these where more than 4,000 standing or 10,000 seated are in attendance, and all other events and venues previously covered. Organisers of all events with more than 1,000 attendees will be expected to check a minimum of 50% of attendees for certification of vaccination, exemption, or negative test.
From Monday, a person will need to show they have had a booster to be considered ‘fully vaccinated’ if their last vaccine dose was more than four months ago. The NHS Scotland COVID Status app will be updated from this Thursday and will include booster jags on the QR code for domestic settings. Updated paper and PDF certificates are already available on request from the NHS Inform website or helpline.
Cabinet will next review the state of the epidemic on Tuesday 18 January and consider whether it may be possible to lift capacity caps on indoor live events, including theatre performances and concerts, from 24 January, by which time the impact of the return to schools and workplaces following the festive period should start to show. Cabinet will also consider whether COVID certification should be required in a broader range of settings.
Local authorities will receive up to £5 million of additional support to ensure ventilation in schools and early years settings meets the latest COVID-19 safety guidance.
The funding is to improve air flow, such as adjustments to windows and doors, use of fan systems and use of air cleaning devices in line with existing safety guidance. This is in addition to Scottish Government funding of £10 million provided local authorities for ventilation and CO2 monitoring last year.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “We remain in a highly challenging phase of the pandemic. Case numbers are high, and the impacts of that are severe, and the future trajectory does remain uncertain at this stage.
“But, because of the efforts we have all made, we are in a better position than I feared would be the case when additional measures were announced in December, and I do hope we are now seeing signs of improvement.
“That is allowing us to start the process from Monday of lifting the additional restrictions – and I hope that next week I will be able to confirm the further steps in that process.
“In the meantime, we can all continue to act in a way that keeps things moving in the right direction. Get fully vaccinated as soon as you can – if you haven’t done so already, please do that and do it this week. Try to limit your contacts for a further period, and prioritise the contacts that matter most to you.
“If you are meeting other people socially, test before you go, every time, as close as possible to the time you will be seeing other people and remember to record the result whether that is positive or negative, and take all the other precautions that make a difference.
“‘Living with the virus’, a phrase that we hear more and more right now, is what we all desperately want to do. Unfortunately it doesn’t mean waking up one morning soon and find that COVID has disappeared or that we no longer need to think at all about mitigating the harm it can do.
“Hopefully, we are on a path from COVID being an epidemic to it becoming endemic – in other words, existing at more manageable and consistent levels.
“These are important issues for not just government, but for all of us – so as we prepare the revised strategic framework in weeks to come, we will consult with Parliament, business organisations and other partners across society.
“Our aim is to publish the revised strategic framework within the next few weeks.”
Scottish Rugby responded:
It’s disappointing news for the arts, however:
IMPORTANT CUSTOMER UPDATE from EDINBURGH PLAYHOUSE
Following the Scottish Government announcement on Tuesday 11 January, in which it was confirmed that indoor seated events continue to be limited to 200, we regret to announce that the following performances scheduled to play at the Edinburgh Playhouse have been postponed:
Waitress: 18th January – 22nd January
If you have tickets to these performances, you do not need to do anything at this time. You will be contacted from your point of purchase in the next few days with next steps.
Performances from 25th January onwards are still scheduled to go ahead as planned and any changes to this will be communicated as soon as possible if restrictions should be extended by the Scottish Government.
We thank you for your continued patience and understanding during this difficult time.
Scottish Fans Ask for a 3 Day Shift
“3 days will Make a Huge Difference”
The Scottish Football Supporters Association thank the First Minister and welcome the news that the cabinet have green lighted a return of fans above the short term limit of 500 imposed on 26th December.
Next week’s Scottish Premier League card can now take place in front of full houses starting with Celtic vs Hibs on Monday 17th and it means the early winter breakdown decision by our top 12 clubs has been commercially justified.
But as it stands the clubs below the Premier League and their fans face another weekend with restricted crowds.
The SFSA are aware that there is no strict science stipulating the 17th as the key restart date and ask that the First Minister, the Sports Minister and Cabinet revisit the decision urgently on behalf of all Scotland’s smaller clubs and their fans.
We ask that the date is brought forward to 14th of January instead of the 17th.
This will allow Ayr United, Dunfermline Athletic, Caledonian Thistle, Raith Rovers, Airdrie, Dumbarton and many other smaller clubs to allow their full fan communities back on Saturday. It will also allow for the top of the table clash in the Championship between Partick Thistle and Kilmarnock to have fans in attendance.
This simple change will bring financial benefits to clubs and communities and is we have been advised low risk.
Andy Smith, Chairman of the SFSA said: “A reprieve will make a huge financial difference to many of our smaller clubs and allow all their fans back and a normal Saturday in many communities.
“Too often Scottish Football overlooks the smaller clubs and their supporters when making big decisions. This is a chance to make a statement that football in Scotland is more than just the Premier League”.
