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This Report covers a year in which the UK Government made great strides in taking forward its agenda for the National Health Service in Scotland. In particular, substantial progress was made in implementing the White Paper "Designed to Care" and in securing collaborative and co-operative working within the Service and with other partners. For example, the number of NHS Trusts was reduced significantly, cutting bureaucracy and releasing additional funding for patient care. The new configuration of Acute Hospitals Trusts in particular is enabling the strengthening of clinical networks and the delivery of services to patients in a more integrated and strategic way, which also takes greater account of their wishes. For the first time, Primary Care Trusts and Local Health Care Co-operatives have been established. They are engaging GPs and others involved in primary care in a collaborative approach to the delivery of health services across the whole spectrum of care.
None of this progress could have been achieved without the willing co-operation and commitment of all the staff of the NHS in Scotland. I am very grateful to all those whose dedication to delivering the highest quality of care to patients has ensured that the NHS in Scotland provides a first class service for the people of Scotland.
Following the establishment of the Scottish Parliament, the Scottish Executive assumed responsibility for the Health Service in Scotland. In the Programme for Government - Making It Work Together, which was published on 6 September 1999, the Scottish Executive set out its vision for the NHS in Scotland, accompanied by a series of firm commitments -and the dates by which these commitments will be delivered.
We intend to increase spending on the NHS in Scotland in real terms over the coming years, enabling us to invest in modern, health services of the highest quality. We have already embarked on the biggest ever hospital building programme, which will provide 8 major new hospital developments over the next 4 years, and we will harness modern technology, linking all GP surgeries and hospitals in Scotland, to provide better services for patients.
We want to create a Health Service where the needs and wishes of patients come first. We intend to strengthen the patient's voice and to work to ensure that patients receive prompt, high quality treatment and support throughout their programme of care. We must improve the patient's journey from GP consultation to hospital discharge, and I will shortly announce targets to speed treatment and shorten waiting times. Walk-in/walk-out hospitals, where patients will be assessed and treated by specialist staff offering same day treatment, will be introduced, and an additional 80 one-stop clinics, where patients receive both a diagnosis and treatment on the same day, will be established.
But a modern Health Service is not just about treating and caring for people when they are ill; we need to tackle the root causes of ill health and to promote better health for the people of Scotland. Earlier this year, I was pleased to take the opportunity in the
Scottish Parliament to formally endorse the White Paper Towards A Healthier Scotland as a document for action. Work is now underway on taking forward the recommendations in the White Paper, including the creation of a network of Healthy Living Centres, which will focus on improving health, particularly in areas of poverty and deprivation. And I will be working in partnership with local authority, education, voluntary and private sector colleagues to mount a concerted, co-ordinated drive to improve the health and life expectancy of the Scottish people, particularly the disadvantaged.
The Scottish Executive will continue to support the NHS in Scotland and its staff by implementing policies which will allow them to carry out their jobs to the best of their ability, and which will ensure that the people of Scotland are provided with a Health Service that is second to none.
SUSAN DEACON MSP
Minister for Health and Community Care
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