Funding of £7 million will improve GP surgeries, expanding the level of care to patients across Scotland.
Vacant high street units will be taken over by Integration Authorities to expand the primary care estate, with the funding also used to support GP practices, including digitising records to free up more space.
The Scottish Government has set aside £5 million from the Primary Care Fund in 2021/22 to make improvements to existing GP premises. An additional £2 million will obtain new sites to accommodate multi-disciplinary teams including those administering vaccines, mental health nurses and audiology specialists.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “GP surgeries provide a wide range of services, supporting both the physical and mental health of patients. So it’s vital they get the space they need to allow primary care multi-disciplinary teams to do their jobs.
“As we recover from the most challenging time in NHS history, our work is not only about providing access to services, but ensuring those services are high quality and inclusive for all of our communities. This funding will give GP practices the space they need to serve patients in the safest and most effective way.”
The £5 million from the Primary Care Fund will cover:
Premises Improvement Grants to GP contractors who own or lease from private landlords
digitisation of paper GP records to release space
improved ventilation
increased space in NHS-owned or leased premises to support multi-disciplinary teams
The Scottish Government will monitor how Health Boards spend the further £2 million to acquire vacant high street units to inform how the £10 billion available for capital investment in healthcare supports primary care.
Hospitals in Scotland are rolling out new single tests to identify whether patients are infected with Covid-19, flu or RSV (respiratory syncytial virus).
The new three-in-one “multiplex tests” will be used when patients arrive showing respiratory symptoms at some emergency departments and assessment units.
They have been introduced with £5 million of Scottish Government investment.
They provide an advantage over “multi-target testing” which requires two or more tests to be carried out – one for Covid-19 and a second for other viruses such as flu A, flu B and RSV.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “The introduction of these new tests is an important step to help protect our NHS staff and patients, as services remobilise and we learn to live with the virus.
“The results will help hospital staff assess the treatment and placement of patients which should help accelerate patient flow through the system. It will also play a key role in avoiding healthcare associated infections and co-infection.
“It would be a mistake to think that the successful delivery of the vaccination programme means testing becomes less important.
“Testing will continue to play a vital role in our drive to bring down new cases of Covid-19 and break off future chains of transmission.”
The fastest multiplex tests will see results provided within two hours and will be prioritised for emergency admissions to assist with patient placement and treatment. Other laboratory-based tests may take between 90 minutes and eight hours for the results to come through.
All asymptomatic patients, staff and citizens will still be tested for SARS CoV-2 only and this will constitute the majority of testing in Scotland.
A new vaccination clinic has opened this week in Ocean Terminal, making it even easier for you to get your first and second dose of the COVID vaccine.
The clinic is open seven days a week, from 11am to 7pm. You don’t need to make an appointment to attend, and you don’t need to be registered with a GP to get a jab.
Anyone over 12 can drop in, just make your way to the clinic which is on the first floor of the centre. If you’re coming to get your second jab, you must have had your first jab at least eight weeks ago.
Unite Scotland has today revealed the details of a ‘devastating’ survey conducted of nearly 300 Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) workers.
The survey conducted over the last month by the trade union among its SAS members reveals a ‘horrifying’ picture of the nation’s ambulance service due to years of ‘chronic underfunding’.
The survey reveals that by huge majorities SAS workers feel under-valued, fatigued; that staff morale has collapsed, with the vast majority of workers stating the nation’s ambulance service is under-resourced and under-staffed.
Substantial majorities of SAS workers also state that they have considered leaving the ambulance service and reported that they have been abused at work in the last year.
The headline survey findings reveal the following:
98.2% believe that Scottish Government’s extra investment of £20m into the SAS and support from the armed services will ‘not be enough’ during the winter months;
88.2% do not feel valued by the Scottish Government and 84.6% do not feel valued by the SAS;
86.7% of SAS workers felt that staff morale was either poor (30.8%) or very poor (55.9%);
86.4% feel fatigued at work while 78.9% believe the SAS is under-staffed;
81.5% have suffered verbal or physical abuse, or both, while working at the SAS within the last year;
73.6% of respondents said they have considered leaving the SAS;
70% do not get the necessary break times during shifts;
53.8% stated that there were not enough ambulances at ‘station level’; and
44.3% stated that the longest shift they have worked was between 12-15 hours, 30%between 15-20 hours; 17.5% between 10-12 hours while 5.7% stated it was under 10 hours and 2.5% over 20 hours.
In a previous Daily Record Exclusive on 9 September, Unite called for a ‘major incident’ status to be declared at all hospitals with Accident and Emergency Units, where turnaround times exceed 30 minutes.
The demand was made by Unite to protect the public who have made 999 calls in the community, amid patient safety concerns due to 6 hours service running times.
On average, an ambulance response to a 999 call can take between 55 minutes, and 1 hour and 10 minutes, from call to completion. However, ambulances are now missing three 999 calls while located at a hospital waiting for patient handovers.
The survey findings shed new light on this depressing situation with nearly 71% of respondents declaring that the longest 999 call they have been involved in from call to completion exceeded six hours: (16.3% – over 20 hours), (11.7% between 15-20 hours), (6.3% between 12-15 hours), (4.6% between 10-12 hours), (5.4% between 8-10 hours), and (26.4% between 6-8 hours), with the remainder being under 6 hours.
Worryingly, 94.5% of survey respondents involved in ambulance 999 call-outs believed the clinical coding to ascertain the severity of the situation was wrong. In addition, 54.7% answered ‘yes’ to the question ‘due to longer service running times has your ‘call’ been involved in an adverse clinical event due to delays and hospital pressures?’
Unite Scotland has repeatedly warned the Health Secretary, Humza Yousaf, that the extra investment and resources for the SAS would ‘not be enough’ to deal with the crises affecting the nation’s health services, which the survey findings conclusively confirm.
Pat Rafferty, Unite Scottish Secretary, in response to the survey findings, said: “I don’t think I have ever seen such an utterly depressing and horrifying situation with massive implications for the nation.
“The workers at the Scottish Ambulance Service are sending out their own 999 call to the Scottish Government saying that they are undervalued, stressed, and exhausted. It is now beyond breaking point.
“The levels of abuse the workers are suffering is inexcusable. The vast majority of those responding to our survey are going as far as to say they are now considering leaving the ambulance service.
“Shockingly, the survey reveals a culture of extremely long hours, partially due to chronic underfunding over many years, and the overwhelming stresses being placed on the system. This situation is directly leading to paramedics and ambulance staff being increasingly involved in adverse clinical events, and dangerously long response times.
“It is a devasting indictment of the Scottish Government’s approach to the ambulance service. Urgent action is necessary because lives are at risk alongside the fundamental issue of how we value those trying to save those lives.”
Almost 100,000 people in Scotland have reported that they’re suffering with long Covid but it has taken until today (Tuesday 9 November) for the Scottish Parliament to debate this important issue.
I led this debate in Parliament yesterday because no matter how much campaigners and MSPs raise the issue, the SNP Health Secretary is just not listening.
It is shameful that it has taken an opposition party debate for the plight of long Covid sufferers to be heard in Parliament.
The SNP/Green Government’s action plan on long Covid is totally unfit for the scale of this challenge. Many Scots would be better off moving to England where there are well-established clinics and a care pathway.
We need to do much more to help long Covid sufferers. That is why I am calling on the SNP/Green Government to:
Have specialist long Covid clinics in every health board
Train more long Covid community nurses to offer in-home support
Give everyone who needs it access to physiotherapy and rehab treatment
Make sure long Covid sufferers are not penalised financially because they are absent from work for longer periods
You can join me in calling for action from the Scottish Government by signing up to my plan for long Covid here:
The UK’s Chief Veterinary Officer has confirmed that the virus responsible for Covid-19 has been detected in a pet dog in the UK.
The infection was confirmed following tests at the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) laboratory in Weybridge on 3 November. The dog is now recovering at home.
All available evidence suggests that the dog contracted the coronavirus from its owners who had previously tested positive for Covid-19. There is no evidence to suggest that the animal was involved in the transmission of the disease to its owners or that pets or other domestic animals are able to transmit the virus to people.
The advice from UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is for people to wash their hands regularly, including before and after contact with animals.
Chief Veterinary Officer Christine Middlemiss said: “Tests conducted by the Animal and Plant Health Agency have confirmed that the virus responsible for Covid-19 has been detected in a pet dog in the UK. The infected dog was undergoing treatment for another unrelated condition and is now recovering.
It is very rare for dogs to be infected and they will usually only show mild clinical signs and recover within a few days.
There is no clear evidence to suggest that pets directly transmit the virus to humans. We will continue to monitor this situation closely and will update our guidance to pet owners should the situation change.
Dr Katherine Russell, Consultant Medical Epidemiologist at UKHSA, said: “COVID-19 is predominantly spread from person to person but in some situations the virus can spread from people to animals.
“In line with general public health guidance, you should wash your hands regularly, including before and after contact with animals.”
Pet owners can access the latest government guidance on how to continue to care for their animals during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The case has been reported to the World Organisation for Animal Health in line with international commitments. There have been a very small number of confirmed cases in pets in other countries in Europe, North America and Asia.
Researchers at Queen’s University Belfast have developed a new treatment to be used in combination with radiotherapy that could significantly improve treatment outcomes for men with locally advanced prostate cancer.
The treatment can make cancerous cells up to 30% more receptive to radiotherapy while simultaneously reducing adverse side effects that limit quality of life.
Radiotherapy is extensively used to treat various localised cancers including prostate cancer, offering the best chance for curative intervention. However, approximately 30% of prostate cancer patients experience treatment failure leading to disease progression.
The research team at Queen’s have developed a new nanomedicine comprised of tiny gold particles, coated in a small peptide called RALA. If these nanoparticles are present in tumour cells when treated with radiotherapy, they increase the cell killing potential of this conventional treatment, helping to reduce the risk of disease relapse. In the absence of radiation, the gold nanoparticles are not directly toxic, meaning that risk of treatment related toxicity is low.
Various groups around the world have reported that gold nanoparticles, or other high-atomic number elements, hold the potential to sensitise tumour cells to radiation treatment, but one key challenge has been delivering these particles in sufficient levels to the right regions within the tumour cells.
Combining the gold particles with RALA increases the efficiency of nanoparticle uptake, while also enabling the gold particles to be delivered to regions within the cells which are more sensitive to the effects of radiation damage.
The study, published in Nanobiotechnology, shows that through the new formulation, prostate cancer cells were rendered up to 30% more sensitive to the cell killing effects of the same radiotherapy used to treat patients.
Furthermore, in experiments investigating the magnitude of effect in small 3-dimentional models of prostate tumors called tumourspheres, the combination of radiation and RALA-gold nanoparticles completely suppressed tumoursphere growth.
Professor Helen McCarthy, from the School of Pharmacy at Queen’s University Belfast, explains: “The peptide enables the gold nanoparticles to be delivered more efficiently to the tumour cells. The gold then interacts with the radiotherapy, increasing the cell killing effect in a highly localised manner.”
The gold particles are up to three times more visible on standard medical imaging equipment. This means that if the nanoparticles are located within the tumour, they should help to improve the accuracy of radiotherapy delivery, reducing the risk of off-target damage to neighboring normal tissue such as the bladder or bowel.
The multi-disciplinary team have recently been awarded £376,000 from Prostate Cancer UK to evaluate the effectiveness of these implants at increasing the sensitivity of prostate cancer cells to radiotherapy.
Dr Jonathan Coulter (top), from the School of Pharmacy at Queen’s University Belfast, explains: “Our research has shown that ultra-low concentrations of the RALA-gold nanoparticles effectively sensitise prostate tumour cells to radiotherapy.
“Now we want to build on this work, to address the second major challenge, consistently delivering sufficient nanoparticles to the tumour throughout a patients’ radiotherapy. We are delighted that Prostate Cancer UK are supporting our proposal to develop a biodegradable implant designed to provide sustained release of the gold nanoparticles.”
“Following insertion into the main tumour lesion, the biodegradable implant will consistently release the nanoparticles over time. This is opposed to current approaches that involve daily injections. Following consultation with a local prostate cancer patient focus groups, we learned that a one off implant would be better tolerated by patients than regular injections to the tumour.”
Lothian MSP Foysol Choudhury has warned that NHS Lothian is in crisis as another week of dismal A&E figures has been recorded.
Statistics published yesterday show that only 64.8 per cent of attendances in NHS Lothian at A&E in the week ending 31st October were seen within four hours.
363 patients spent over eight hours in A&E, with 132 waiting over 12 hours.
1,504 patients waited over 4 hours.
These are among the worst weekly A&E times on record for NHS Lothian.
Scottish Labour MSP Foysol Choudhury said:“Yet another week of shocking statistics showing the reality of SNP mismanagement of our NHS.
“Lothian patients are in dire need of medical help and they are not receiving the swift attention they deserve. These are truly shocking figures that show once again just how out of depth the SNP Health Secretary Humza Yousef is.
“The SNP has left NHS doctors and nurses over-worked, under-staffed and under-resourced – and it is patients who are paying the price.’’
More than 2 million consultations with NHS Pharmacy First
An innovative NHS community pharmacy service has helped see patients quickly and relieve pressure on A&E units and GP surgeries by sparing the NHS 200,000 avoidable appointments for the treatment of urinary tract and skin infections in the last year.
The NHS Pharmacy First network of more than 1,200 community pharmacies are the first port of call for minor ailments and common clinical conditions. The NHS Pharmacy First Scotland service has carried out over 2 million consultations since the launch of the service in July 2020.
The service provides free access to a consultation with an appropriately qualified member of the pharmacy team who provides advice on self-care, referral to another part of the NHS if they feel it is necessary and, if appropriate, will provide treatment.
The community pharmacist can also treat certain conditions such as urinary tract infections, shingles and impetigo without the need for a prescription or to see a doctor. This is part of a co-ordinated series of measures to improve patient care and help reduce demand on A&E.
Pharmacists in the network have taken more than 200,000 appointments in the last year which would otherwise have gone to GP surgeries or hospital A&E departments.
Since its launch at the height of the pandemic, only 4% of patients needed to be referred on to another healthcare professional, such as a GP or hospital unit. The majority were handled by the pharmacy team, advice on self-care or with treatment.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “Community pharmacists are playing a fantastic role in ensuring that millions of people have their minor ailment needs addressed quickly, without needing to go to a GP or hospital. They are a prime example of getting the right care in the right place at the right time.
“This is particularly helpful as our NHS faces one of the most difficult winters in its history, with the NHS Pharmacy First service helping to relieve some of the current pressures faced by emergency departments. As community pharmacy staff continue to give care and advice during the busy winter period, please continue to be kind and patient.
“The Scottish Government introduced the NHS Pharmacy First service, backed by £10 million of investment. As part of the NHS Recovery Plan we will look to expand the range of common clinical conditions that can be treated by community pharmacists, avoiding unnecessary GP and out of hours appointments.
“We have also committed to establishing a community pharmacy hospital discharge and medicines reconciliation service to help speed up the process for people being discharged from hospital. New digital solutions such as ePrescribing and eDispensing will make prescribing paperless and free up capacity for healthcare professionals to see more patients, while making it easier for the public to access their medicines quickly and safely.”
NHS Pharmacy First Scotland launched on 29 July 2020, and is designed to encourage everyone to visit their community pharmacy as the first port of call for all minor illnesses and specific common clinical conditions.
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