Question reference: S5W-29811
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
- Date lodged: 9 June 2020
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Current status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 26 June 2020
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps are being taken to ensure coordination across NHS board areas for setting up COVID-19-protected sites for cancer diagnostic and treatment services in hospitals.
Answer
The Scottish Government and NHS colleagues have been working hard to ensure that patients in, and who enter hospital for non-covid related treatment, remain as safe as possible.
By utilising private sector capacity we ensuring that urgent cancer procedures are being carried out in a COVID free environment. In addition to the work carried out in our own NHS facilities the Private Hospitals (staffed by NHS Surgeons and Anaesthetists) have treated (as of w/e 07 June) 1520 urgent surgical cancer procedures had been undertaken, and 2090 outpatient appointments, which has provided support to 9 NHS Boards.
Alongside this, we are working on a hot and cold model, where hospitals with capacity to do so, would be separated into safe treatment areas for both Covid and non-Covid related treatment. It would not be feasible to have a cancer specific site, as Scotland covers a large geography and cancer is not just one disease, there is a huge range of specialisms and treatments for different diseases and these need to be available across the country.
In order to provide these COVID free spaces, the Scottish Government’s approach is focused on saving lives and protecting the vulnerable, rolling out Test and Protect to interrupt chains of transmission in the community, and continuing the vital surveillance work to support our understanding of the disease in Scotland. We are prioritising testing NHS and key workers, including those in the care sector. Since the start of the outbreak we have significantly increased our testing capacity- with total daily weekday capacity of more than 25,000 tests.
A framework has been developed to provide clear guiding principles for Health Boards when carrying out cancer surgery and builds on the initial guidance that has been issued to Health Boards since the beginning of this pandemic. This national framework means that patients requiring treatment will receive it at the earliest opportunity.
To ensure the focus remains on the prioritisation of cancer services the National Cancer Recovery Group has been established to provide strategic national end to end oversight of clinical services and was convened on 05 June.
This work will be supported by a National Cancer Treatment group who will agree and monitor prioritisation of cancer treatment.