The National Scheduled Care Programme known as “Getting Ahead – sustainable whole systems management for elective services” has been discussed in detail with the NHS Scotland Chief Operating Officers Group and other informal discussions with a number of NHS boards as well as the British Medical Association.

The Health Directorate Access Support Team will be meeting with all boards to support them in taking forward this work over the next few months.

The National Clinical Strategy was developed by a small team led by Dr Angus Cameron, on loan from NHS Dumfries and Galloway, and overseen by a group chaired by Professor Jason Leitch, National Clinical Director.

In developing the strategy, there was engagement with a wide variety of staff across Scottish Government and NHS boards, with clinicians and their representatives. The engagement process included meetings with chief executives, finance directors, directors of planning, medical directors, nurse directors, chief pharmacists, area clinical forum leads, directors of public health, chief operating officers, HR directors, the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, the Scottish Partnership Forum, eHealth advisors, the Royal College of Nursing, the Royal College of General Practitioners, the Royal College of Surgeons and the British Medical Association. In addition there was significant clinical engagement with meetings open to all clinicians held in Edinburgh, Dundee, Aberdeen, Inverness, Fort William, Glasgow and Dumfries.

Membership of the oversight group was as follows:

Dr Catherine Calderwood, Scottish Government, Chief Medical Officer

Fiona McQueen, Scottish Government, Chief Nursing Officer

John Matheson, Scottish Government, Finance Director (until January 2016)

Dr Andrew Longmate, Scottish Government, Senior Medical Officer

Professor Craig White, Scottish Government, Divisional Clinical Lead

Elizabeth Porterfield, Scottish Government, Head Strategic Planning and Clinical Priorities

Karen MacNee, Scottish Government, Senior Policy Analyst

Robert Calderwood, Chief Executive, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde

Cathie Cowan, Chief Executive, NHS Orkney

John Turner, Chief Executive, NHS24 (until July 2015)

Jill Young, Chief Executive, Golden Jubilee Foundation

Lindsay Burley, Chair, NHS National Education Scotland

Jeane Freeman, Chair, Golden Jubilee Foundation

The Scottish Government remains committed to maintaining and improving services at the Vale of Leven Hospital. We have been consistently clear that we see a bright future for the hospital, which plays a crucial role in the local healthcare system.

Information on how many (a) consultants, (b) doctors, (c) nurses, (d) allied health professionals, (e) administrators and (f) other staff have been based at the Vale of Leven Hospital in each year since 2007 is not held centrally. Specific local information will be available from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

Under this government, staffing levels in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde have increased by 916.3 WTE, or 2.8 per cent.

The Scottish Government will distribute the £250 million to health boards via their annual allocations, using the same allocation formula as was used for distribution of the Integrated Care Fund. This approach takes account of funding formulae used for the NHS and local government, using a 1:1 ratio of the National Resource Allocation Committee formula for the NHS and grant aided expenditure formula for local government.

The NHS senior leaders forum are the Director General for Health and Social Care and Chief Executive of NHS Scotland, directors of the Scottish Government’s Health and Social Care Directorate, NHS Scotland chairs and chief executives, and the chairs of the NHS Scotland medical directors and nurse directors groups. The forum forms part of regular engagement between Scottish Government and NHS boards.

NHS territorial and special health boards were advised of their initial allocations for 2016-17 on 26 February 2016.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-30038 on 4 March 2016. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

Specific local information will be available from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde who are responsible for the planning and provision of local services.

This is a matter for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde who are responsible for the planning and provision of local services.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-30051 on 4 March 2016. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.