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Analysis of the responses to the 2020 Health and Social Care Staff Wellbeing Survey, by protected characteristics, was completed in 2021. The results did not show any significant differences in the wellbeing of staff from under-represented groups, compared to other groups of staff and compared to the general well-being of under-represented groups in the general population.

Demographic questions, including on ethnicity were included in the 2021 and 2022 iMatter Health and Social Care Staff Experience Continuous Improvement Model questionnaires for the first time.

The demographic analysis is scheduled to be available later this year. This will allow Health Boards to put action plans in place to deliver improvements, where needed, for under-represented groups.

The demographic questions replicate the 2022 Scottish Census questions, meaning that direct comparisons of the workforce to the population can be made.’

As outlined to the member in parliamentary question S6W-13453 on 26 January 2023, the national framework for acute oncology services has been published. The framework lays out the agreed key principles that underpin an effective Acute Oncology Service (AOS) in NHS Scotland and outlines the clinical standards and proposed outcome measures against which services can be developed and monitored.

In addition, we have committed to increasing the acute oncology workforce as outlined in the National Workforce Strategy for Health and Social Care.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at /chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

To date, the NHSScotland ‘Once for Scotland’ Workforce Policies Programme has refreshed the following PIN policies and process:

These were launched on 1 March 2020.

In addition, the NHSScotland Whistleblowing Policy that includes the National Whistleblowing Standards was published in April 2021.

Following a pause due to the pandemic, the ‘Once for Scotland’ Workforce Policies programme of work has formally restarted.

The objective of the Once for Scotland Workforce Policies Programme is to produce refreshed, simple, standardised and person centred policies that are:

• accessible on an innovative digital solution;
• dynamic and interactive with staff and managers at the centre of policy and digital development;
• national standard for employment practice in NHSScotland.

This programme of work has and will continue to be progressed in partnership with representation from NHSScotland employers, trade unions and the Scottish Government using a dynamic and interactive engagement process involving all key stakeholders.

The Programme Board, that also has representation from the Scottish Government, Employers and trade unions, oversee and drive this work, supported by policy and digital development groups. The Programme Board reports to the Scottish Workforce and Governance Committee.

I refer the member to the Scottish Governments National Workforce Strategy for Health and Social Care, where we committed to developing a Remote and Rural Workforce Recruitment Strategy for Health and Social Care by the end of 2024. An update on the National Workforce Strategy for Health and Social Care will be published later this year.

63% of respondents for whom health was a relevant concern told us that their ability to access health services was much better or a little better after receiving support from Connecting Scotland. 36% of respondents told us that their ability to access health services hadn’t changed and 1.4% said that access was worse or much worse.

If this result was reflected across the entire Connecting Scotland cohort of over 60000 people receiving devices, we could estimate that around 38,000 of those would have experienced some improvement in accessing healthcare services.

Overall this result indicates a positive impact of Connecting Scotland support on people’s ability to access the health services they need. It may be that respondents who felt there had been ‘no change’ in this respect already had a routine means of accessing the healthcare services non-digital channels (e.g. ordering repeat prescriptions over the phone). With more and more digitisation of healthcare service touchpoints being implemented in order to create efficiencies and save money it is likely that the numbers of people using their Connecting Scotland device and internet connection for this purpose will show an increase with time.

Here are some of the things that Connecting Scotland users have told us about how it has benefited them to use their device and internet connection to access health services:

“Allowing very important near me medical calls”

“Being able to access health services much easier, including managing appointments and medicines.”

“It has allowed us to do more things and stayed connected to appointments within the NHS, so I've been able to attend my hospital appointments via the tablet and it allows me to see things on a bigger screen than a small mobile phone (I have bad vision).”

(Aggregated survey data for phases 1 and 2 of Connecting Scotland. There were 1174 responses overall for whom access to health services was relevant.)

Scotland has some of the strongest homelessness legislation in the world and all local authorities have a legal duty to provide support to anyone at risk of homelessness, including veterans.

Preventing homelessness from happening in the first place is the best and most effective way to end homelessness. That is why, we commissioned the Veterans Scotland Housing Group to develop specific strategies to prevent homelessness for veterans. Their report was published in January 2022. We have accepted the 24 recommendations in principle and are engaging with partners on next steps.

Additionally, we continue to support the charity Housing Options Scotland to provide its Military Matters project, helping veterans and serving members of the Armed Forces to find the right home in the right place. The Scottish Government website also hosts a guide containing housing in Scotland information and contacts of organisations who may be able to help veterans obtain housing suitable for their needs.

The Scottish Government works closely with the Scottish Prison Service and last year attended the Veterans in Custody Support Officer (VICSO) gathering at HMP Castle Huntly to discuss how we can better support their work, including future attendance at a Breakfast Club event. Officials will again attend a VICSO gathering in February. Furthermore, the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey now includes a question on former Service in the Armed Forces. We are considering analysis proposals from this survey and findings will be available at varying points during mid-to late-2023. Having a veterans question in this national survey will improve our understanding of the profile, circumstances and needs of veterans in Scotland which in turn will help inform policy and services.

We also support Police Scotland’s pledges under the Armed Forces Covenant to support the Armed Forces and veterans community, including pledges to review and refresh the Veterans Champion role across local policing divisions and to introduce Veterans Champions within its custody and criminal justice environment.

Veterans’ specific welfare support is a matter centrally supported by UK Government policy and delivered by and the , part of Ministry of Defence (MOD). The UK-wide service works with local authorities, voluntary organisations, service charities and the .

The Scottish Government’s Benefit Take-up Stakeholder Reference Group works with a range of specific seldom-heard groups, including veterans’ groups, to better understand and address non-take-up among particular populations and to maximise incomes. In the current year (2022-23) we have allocated over £12.5 million to support the provision of free income maximisation, welfare and debt advice.

The Scottish Government has designed the application guidance for Scottish Government benefits to provide comprehensive information on entitlement. Similarly, signposting is included to refer clients to the relevant agencies for reserved benefits where appropriate. Adult Disability Payment launched in August last year. The application form asks clients about their possible entitlement to Armed Forces Independence Payment, War Pensioners’ Mobility Supplement and War Pension Constant Attendance Allowance. Where appropriate, clients are then directed to Veterans UK for further advice. We have also worked with Veterans UK to develop an information sharing process between the organisation and Social Security Scotland. This is intended to ensure that veterans can efficiently access the support to which they are entitled.

We use a range of measures to monitor the wellbeing of the workforce taking into account the diverse nature of the workforce operating in a range of roles and geographies, the broad spectrum of wellbeing needs at both a professional and personal level and different reporting arrangements across sectors. Our approach reflects a combination of the following measures; the annual iMatter survey, feedback from local and national staffside and other stakeholder channels, academic research, data collected by regulators and partners and evaluation of nationally-led initiatives. In addition, the Wellbeing Champions Network is now well-established to provide feedback on areas of priority need, and to share best practice across health, social care and social work organisations.

We are continuing to work with leaders across health, social care and social work, as well as hearing directly from staff, to understand where the current pressures are, and what further actions can be taken to mitigate their impact on staff. We are working on a range of local initiatives designed to meet the basic and practical needs of staff, and their teams. This includes access to quiet spaces to support health and wellbeing, and the installation of lockers.

To complement the local support available for the mental health and wellbeing of the health and social care workforce, the Scottish Government are continuing to provide a range of resources including the National Wellbeing Hub, a 24/7 National Wellbeing Helpline, confidential mental health treatment through the Workforce Specialist Service, Coaching for Wellbeing and funding for additional local psychological support. We are also working closely with NHS Boards to support a range of local initiatives designed to meet the basic and practical needs of Doctors in Training, and their teams. This includes access to quiet spaces to support health and wellbeing, and the installation of lockers.

Our ongoing response will be informed by the Improving Wellbeing and Workforce Cultures Strategy which will be launched in 2023. The strategy is a commitment from the Scottish Government to drive a supportive and enabling culture for people working in health, social care and social work across wellbeing, leadership and equalities.