Weekly news
Released on 01/02/2010
Events Diary
2 March
NHS QIS
National Clinical Governance Conference: Tomorrow’s World
Glasgow Hilton
Conference programme will focus on HAIs and patient safety. Registration open January 2010. See flyer at www.nhshealthquality.org/nhsqis/files/Flyer_Conferenceabstract.pdf.
4 March
IHM Scotland
How to increase your power and influence
9.30am-4pm, Dunblane Hydro
Hilary Robertson of Double Loop Development presents a one day workshop aimed at
developing the skills and techniques required by managers to increase their power to affect decision-making and change in their
organisations and to improve the influence they have with colleagues and partners. Links directly to the IHM Milestone ‘Role of the
Enterprise Manager’. See attached flyer for full details.
22 April
IHM Scotland
Leading great teams
9.30am-4pm, Holiday Inn East Kilbride
Joyce Brown of Balkello Consulting presents a one day workshop looking at critical aspects of team functioning and giving guidance in dealing with team conflict. For managers at all levels who wish to take stock of their team’s functioning and plan for improvements. See flyer for details.
This week in Parliament
Wednesday
10:00 Health & Sport Committee
The Committee will take evidence in its inquiry into
out-of-hours healthcare provision in rural areas from Nicola Sturgeon MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing, Frank Strang, Deputy Director, Primary Care, Jill Vickerman, Head of Healthcare Planning, and Ian Williamson, Performance Manager of Scottish Ambulance Service and NHS 24, Scottish Government.
14:30 Stage 3 Proceedings: Budget (Scotland) (No.4) Bill
Thursday
11:40 General Questions
John Scott: what steps are being taken to increase access to community-based health services in areas of multiple deprivation; Kenneth Gibson: what impact will the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s plans to increase national insurance contributions by 1% from April 2011 at a cost of £104.3 million to the Scottish Budget have on jobs in local government, the NHS, the police and fire services; Derek Brownlee: whether the Scottish Government supports a greater role for the voluntary sector in delivering public services.
12:00 First Minister’s Questions
Motion
Ian McKee (SNP, Lothian): Family Nurse Partnership Programme in Lothian—That the Parliament congratulates NHS Lothian on being selected by the Scottish Government as a test site, fully funded for three years, for a Family Nurse Partnership programme, an intensive preventive programme for vulnerable first-time young parents that has a 30-year evidence base showing the potential for improvements in women’s ante-natal health, reductions in children’s injuries, greater intervals between births, increases in fathers’ involvement, increases in employment and earnings, reductions in the need for benefits, improvements in school readiness, reduced arrests and criminal behaviour in 15-year-olds and mothers and that eventually produces savings five times the amount of an initial investment; realises that one measure alone is not the entire answer to challenges in this field but a welcome start, and wishes the project every success.
All change at the top at IHM Scotland
IHM Scotland has a new Secretary after Jim Currie stepped down at the Annual General Meeting, having completed the maximum five year term in the post allowed by the Institute’s constitution. Martin Hill takes on the role of Scottish Secretary, following his
unanimous nomination by IHM Scottish Council and approval by members attending the AGM.
In a presentation on behalf of members, IHM Scottish Council member Karen Murray said that Jim’s
experience as a high level NHS manager and the
networks he had developed in his long NHS career had proved invaluable to the Institute. Mentioning just some of Jim’s achievements in his five years as
Secretary, Karen highlighted the added rigour he had brought to business processes, his first-class skills in attracting and retaining sponsorship, the highly
successful partnership he forged with NES to launch the Managers’ Development Network, and the firm establishment under his leadership of IHM as a key player in management education in Scotland. Scottish Council chair, Malcolm Wright, also recorded his
appreciation for the “outstanding” job that Jim had done as Secretary.
Jim’s replacement as Scottish Secretary, Martin Hill, is well known in Scotland’s healthcare management community, having had a long career in NHS Scotland, culminating as Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Strategic Planning and Performance Management for NHS Lanarkshire, prior to his retirement. Previously, Martin was chief executive of the former Lanarkshire Primary Care Trust and served on the 21st Century Social Work in Scotland Review Group. He is currently a non-executive board member of NHS24.
Also at the AGM, chair Malcolm Wright looked forward to the year ahead, both for IHM Scotland and for NHS management. Malcolm contended that the defined set of skills that managers bring will become more
important than ever in the financial downturn, with good management playing a crucial role in protecting frontline services and ensuring best value for money for the public.
Both Jim and Malcolm highlighted the strong support they had been given in their work by IHM Scotland business and Education Manager, Hilary Iannotti,
Honorary Treasurer, Christina McLaughlin, and Gail Hayworth, who provides administrative support to the Scottish Council.
MSPs pass new
tobacco restrictions
The Scottish Conservative’s Tobacco and
Primary Medical Services Bill was passed by Parliament last week, with only Conservative MSPs voting against. The legislation will ban retail displays of tobacco products, ban
cigarette vending machines, establish a
registration scheme for tobacco retailers and create an offence of ‘proxy purchasing’ by adults of cigarettes for under-18s.
Scottish Labour had threatened to amend the Bill to remove the sanctions against cigarette vending machines, but changed its position and supported the measure. Had vending machines not been banned, Scotland would have become the only part of the UK to
continue to allow them.
The display ban will come into force next year for large retailers and in 2013 for smaller
retailers.
Part 2 of the Bill sets eligibility criteria which require that holders of primary medical
services contracts have a direct involvement in the provision of patient care, in effect
banning large commercial companies from applying to take over primary care contracts, as has happened in England.
Closing the debate on the bill, Health
Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said that, “there is no doubt that the bill will take us further—in my view, a long way further—towards the vision that we all share of a non-smoking Scotland. That can only be good for our country's public health.”
Domestic violence guidance
The Scottish Government has issued new guidance to multi-agency partnerships working to tackle violence against women in Scotland. the guidance is intended to support the implementation of Safer Lives: Changed Lives, jointly published last year by the Scottish Government and COSLA.
Download the guidance at www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2010/01/22135945/0.
