Parliamentary Work
Parliamentary Questions
S3W-11594 - Richard Simpson (Ochil) (Lab) (Date Lodged Thursday, April 03, 2008):
To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in light of the Welsh Assembly Government’s national service development strategy for epilepsy, it has any plans to develop a national strategy for epilepsy and learning disability.
Answered by Shona Robison (Wednesday, April 23, 2008):
While there are no specific plans to develop a national strategy for epilepsy and learning disability, a number of other actions have been taken.
SIGN Guideline 70 on the Diagnosis and Management of Epilepsy in Adults and SIGN Guideline 81 on the management of epilepsies in children and young people each has a section dealing with the management of those with learning disabilities and epilepsy, and we expect NHS boards to implement the recommendations in these guidelines through local protocols.
NHS Quality Improvement Scotland is developing clinical standards for neurological conditions, including clinical standards specific to epilepsy. These standards, once finalised, will be mandatory across NHSScotland.
The national review of learning disability services, The Same as You?, emphasises the importance of addressing the range of health care needs of people with learning disabilities who also have specific medical problems, of which epilepsy is one. NHS Quality Improvement Scotland assesses NHS boards'' performance against Learning Disability Quality Indicators, which include specific health needs such as epilepsy.