Latest news with #JeaneFreeman
The Independent
24-03-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Scotland avoided PPE ‘VIP lane' due to devolution, UK Covid-19 Inquiry told
Former Scottish health secretary Jeane Freeman has told the UK Covid-19 Inquiry she believed Scotland avoided a 'VIP lane' for procuring personal protective equipment (PPE) due to devolution. Ms Freeman was 'politically responsible for making sure the health workforce had access to PPE', the inquiry heard, during evidence around procurement of PPE. Giving evidence, Ms Freeman praised NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) and said it was 'minimising the cost of procurement because you're doing it at such scale', although she acknowledged the country 'often came close' to running out of key items. She rejected claims from former prime minister Boris Johnson that the UK 'should have one single route', the inquiry heard. Counsel for the inquiry Tom Stoate said: 'The inquiry has heard about the evidence of a high priority or VIP lane for procurement of PPE. You've talked about how NSS worked. Did that mean Scotland needed a fast-track system?' Ms Freeman said: 'Absolutely not. We had offers of help, all of which were passed to NSS. A proper triage process would apply.' She said that 'due diligence' would be applied 'to help decide whether new offers were appropriate to award new contracts'. Ms Freeman added: 'Audit Scotland said in 2021 there was no evidence of bias. We did not have a VIP lane and did not need one. 'My view is there are many questions to be asked about the VIP lane and application of due diligence and probity to any offer of supply when you are using public money, and when quality and appropriateness of PPE is critical to safety of your staff and patients they are treating.' Mr Stoate asked: 'Did Scotland run out of key items of PPE?' Ms Freeman said: 'No. We are saying we did not run out at any point; we often came close.' Asked about a statement from Mr Johnson that 'we should try to proceed as one UK' regarding procurement, Ms Freeman said: 'If what the former PM means is we should have single procurement route, I don't agree. 'I think it removes the democratic accountability of devolution of the Scottish Government, secondly the route UK Government took with the VIP lane is not one I would wish Scotland to take. 'Having a single system could lead to a system where Scottish ministers are responsible for actions in which they have no say.' Caroline Lamb, chief executive of NHS Scotland and director general of Health and Social Care, told the inquiry that around 75,000 NHS staff have now been 'fit-tested' for FFP3 masks in the wake of the pandemic, compared to around 7,000 prior to it. Giving evidence, she said that in May 2020 Scotland provided two million FFP3 masks to England and another two million to Wales. Ms Lamb said: 'May was in the period when everyone was working really hard to provide PPE needed. As soon as we had that comfort we could provide what was needed in Scotland, we were very keen to provide mutual aid to other nations. 'The relationships at an official level were never bad, but what improved was that recognition that collaboration is great but you need to be equal partners in that collaboration and accept everybody's skills and expertise.' She added: 'Scotland's share of the UK stockpile was not big enough to cope with the scale of pandemic we experienced. We have worked hard now to put in place surge capacity. 'Just in time' may work when demand is fairly predictable, but we need to have in place ability to surge up stock to meet demand.' Under cross-examination from Leslie Thomas KC, representing the Federation of Ethnic Minority Health Organisations, she said efforts had been stepped up to 'fit-test' PPE for NHS staff. Ms Lamb said: 'What became clear in pandemic is one size doesn't necessarily fit all and there was an issue for minority ethnic groups and women; there is a different range of fits available, we also worked closely with a supplier in Scotland to understand the demographics – not just understanding supply but that the people who need that supply have been fit-tested. 'The numbers have gone from 7,000 fit-tested pre-pandemic to around 75,000 in 2023. 'It's not just about having the confidence you've got supply to meet people's needs, it's that they're comfortable they can meet people's needs.'
Yahoo
23-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Covid minister: 'The choice was harm or more harm'
Scotland's Covid pandemic health secretary has said she understands the anger and pain of bereaved relatives - but stands by the decisions she made. Reflecting on the fifth anniversary of the 2020 lockdown, Jeane Freeman said there were no "binary" right or wrong options - and she had to choose between harm and more harm. Asked about a controversial early decision to discharge elderly hospital patients to care homes without testing, she told BBC Scotland's The Sunday Show, there was not enough testing capacity at the time. But Freeman accepted that in hindsight there was room for debate on whether the decision to close schools was the correct one. As health secretary in Nicola Sturgeon's government, Freeman found herself a key decision maker when the outbreak spread to the UK in March 2020. Over the next three years more than 16,000 people would die in Scotland with Covid. Freeman said she was well aware of the potential impact that lockdown would have on individuals, businesses and health services, and she was particularly worried about the reduction in cancer screening. She said: "There was never a binary decision in any of this. "There was a harmful thing to do and a more harmful to do; there was a risky thing and a more risky thing." Freeman was asked directly about the discharge of hospital patients to care homes during the first few weeks of lockdown without a requirement for a negative test. The worst mortality rates were later seen within care homes as the virus spread among vulnerable residents, and the guidance on testing before hospital discharge did not change until 22 April. Freeman denied that in hindsight that looked like a "crazy" decision. "If I could have tested every single resident going into a care home, I would have tested them - but we did not have the capacity to run those tests and process them," she said. She added that alternative measures were in place at the time such as isolation in order to prevent transmission of the Covid-19 virus. Freeman said she "absolutely" understood the anger of those who lost loved ones. She continued: "As I could improve the circumstances, I absolutely did, but there is no getting away from the fact that people died, people were harmed and there was a long term impact." But she that that if she and others had not taken those decisions, things "would have been worse". On the issue of school closures, which former national clinical adviser Jason Leitch has since described as something he might reconsider with hindsight, Freeman was more equivocal. "I can't say for sure that was the wrong decision but I think it is a decision - and I think many of them are actually - worth a reconsideration," she said. "There's certainly things to be done to prepare us to be in a better starting place than we were for the next pandemic - which will come along." Freeman also spoke of her own personal struggles as she helped make life and death policy decisions. "I've described it as two years of running anxiety," she said. Asked if she had been through a process herself to help rationalise what happened, she replied "partly" but that was difficult because she was still involved in public inquiries into the Covid response. "Every time I have to write a witness statement or give evidence, I'm back there living it again." She added: "When we get through the inquiry, I recognise that I will need to do that." The full interview with Jeane Freeman, including material not broadcast by the Sunday Show, is available in a special episode of the Scotcast podcast.
BBC News
23-03-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Covid minister Jeane Freeman: 'The choice was harm or more harm'
Scotland's Covid pandemic health secretary has said she understands the anger and pain of bereaved relatives - but stands by the decisions she made. Reflecting on the fifth anniversary of the 2020 lockdown, Jeane Freeman said there were no "binary" right or wrong options - and she had to choose between harm and more about a controversial early decision to discharge elderly hospital patients to care homes without testing, she told BBC Scotland's The Sunday Show, there was not enough testing capacity at the Freeman accepted that in hindsight there was room for debate on whether the decision to close schools was the correct one. As health secretary in Nicola Sturgeon's government, Freeman found herself a key decision maker when the outbreak spread to the UK in March 2020. Over the next three years more than 16,000 people would die in Scotland with Covid. Freeman said she was well aware of the potential impact that lockdown would have on individuals, businesses and health services, and she was particularly worried about the reduction in cancer screening. She said: "There was never a binary decision in any of this. "There was a harmful thing to do and a more harmful to do; there was a risky thing and a more risky thing."Freeman was asked directly about the discharge of hospital patients to care homes during the first few weeks of lockdown without a requirement for a negative test. The worst mortality rates were later seen within care homes as the virus spread among vulnerable residents, and the guidance on testing before hospital discharge did not change until 22 April. Freeman denied that in hindsight that looked like a "crazy" decision. "If I could have tested every single resident going into a care home, I would have tested them - but we did not have the capacity to run those tests and process them," she added that alternative measures were in place at the time such as isolation in order to prevent transmission of the Covid-19 virus. Freeman said she "absolutely" understood the anger of those who lost loved continued: "As I could improve the circumstances, I absolutely did, but there is no getting away from the fact that people died, people were harmed and there was a long term impact."But she that that if she and others had not taken those decisions, things "would have been worse".On the issue of school closures, which former national clinical adviser Jason Leitch has since described as something he might reconsider with hindsight, Freeman was more equivocal. "I can't say for sure that was the wrong decision but I think it is a decision - and I think many of them are actually - worth a reconsideration," she said. "There's certainly things to be done to prepare us to be in a better starting place than we were for the next pandemic - which will come along." 'Running anxiety' Freeman also spoke of her own personal struggles as she helped make life and death policy decisions. "I've described it as two years of running anxiety," she said. Asked if she had been through a process herself to help rationalise what happened, she replied "partly" but that was difficult because she was still involved in public inquiries into the Covid response. "Every time I have to write a witness statement or give evidence, I'm back there living it again."She added: "When we get through the inquiry, I recognise that I will need to do that."The full interview with Jeane Freeman, including material not broadcast by the Sunday Show, is available in a special episode of the Scotcast podcast.
The Independent
13-03-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Inquiry findings show we were right to delay opening of hospital, says Gray
The findings of an inquiry show it was the right decision not to open an Edinburgh children's hospital, Scottish Health Secretary Neil Gray has said. The Scottish Hospitals Inquiry released its interim findings earlier this month, with chairman Lord Brodie saying NHS Lothian was not clear enough on the design of the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People and Department of Clinical Neurosciences in the capital. The opening of the facility was halted just hours before it was due to begin receiving patients at the behest of then health secretary Jeane Freeman due to concerns about the ventilation system in the paediatric critical care department. Ms Freeman later launched the inquiry, which has also looked at issues with the building of the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital campus in Glasgow after a number of deaths of patients linked to infections. Speaking in Holyrood on Thursday, Mr Gray said Lord Brodie's report showed Ms Freeman made the right decision. 'The interim report confirms that the decision taken by the then cabinet secretary to postpone the opening of the hospital was the right decision,' he said. 'This decision understood the risks associated with the introduction of patients into a facility that had not met the required safety standards. 'Only through this direct intervention by the then cabinet secretary were we able to act and deliver the necessary changes to the built environment.' The opening of the hospital was delayed by almost two years until March 2021, at a reported cost of almost £17 million. The hospital, Mr Gray said, is now providing 'safe, effective, person-centred care, and has been since the facilities opened in March 2021'. But Scottish Labour deputy leader Dame Jackie Baillie – who is also her party's health spokeswoman – questioned why a similar delay did not take place at the Glasgow hospital. 'In the case of the Edinburgh Sick Kids, unfortunate though the delay was and the uncertainty for families, thankfully, no child lost their life,' she said. 'I believe Jeane Freeman was right to put patient safety first. 'In contrast, the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Nicola Sturgeon's flagship, was rushed through when it clearly was not safe and children died as a consequence.' Dame Jackie asked the Health Secretary what lessons had been learned as a result of the issues encountered at the facilities. 'I would caution Jackie Baillie around arriving at conclusions around the Glasgow side of the inquiry – the inquiry is still ongoing,' the Health Secretary said. 'There is much evidence still to be led in that inquiry and I would not, I certainly cannot, prejudge or seem to cut across in any way, the work of a public inquiry.' On lessons that have been learned, the Health Secretary pointed to NHS Assure, an agency set up to assess risk in the NHS estate, which he said was 'about making sure that every single stage of the commissioning of a health infrastructure programme that we have assurance as to the safety and to the practicality of a health project'. He added: 'I believe that is giving us much greater assurance as to the safety that Jackie Baillie is looking for.'
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Inquiry findings show we were right to delay opening of hospital, says Gray
The findings of an inquiry show it was the right decision not to open an Edinburgh children's hospital, Scottish Health Secretary Neil Gray has said. The Scottish Hospitals Inquiry released its interim findings earlier this month, with chairman Lord Brodie saying NHS Lothian was not clear enough on the design of the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People and Department of Clinical Neurosciences in the capital. The opening of the facility was halted just hours before it was due to begin receiving patients at the behest of then health secretary Jeane Freeman due to concerns about the ventilation system in the paediatric critical care department. Ms Freeman later launched the inquiry, which has also looked at issues with the building of the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital campus in Glasgow after a number of deaths of patients linked to infections. Speaking in Holyrood on Thursday, Mr Gray said Lord Brodie's report showed Ms Freeman made the right decision. 'The interim report confirms that the decision taken by the then cabinet secretary to postpone the opening of the hospital was the right decision,' he said. 'This decision understood the risks associated with the introduction of patients into a facility that had not met the required safety standards. 'Only through this direct intervention by the then cabinet secretary were we able to act and deliver the necessary changes to the built environment.' The opening of the hospital was delayed by almost two years until March 2021, at a reported cost of almost £17 million. The hospital, Mr Gray said, is now providing 'safe, effective, person-centred care, and has been since the facilities opened in March 2021'. But Scottish Labour deputy leader Dame Jackie Baillie – who is also her party's health spokeswoman – questioned why a similar delay did not take place at the Glasgow hospital. 'In the case of the Edinburgh Sick Kids, unfortunate though the delay was and the uncertainty for families, thankfully, no child lost their life,' she said. 'I believe Jeane Freeman was right to put patient safety first. 'In contrast, the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Nicola Sturgeon's flagship, was rushed through when it clearly was not safe and children died as a consequence.' Dame Jackie asked the Health Secretary what lessons had been learned as a result of the issues encountered at the facilities. 'I would caution Jackie Baillie around arriving at conclusions around the Glasgow side of the inquiry – the inquiry is still ongoing,' the Health Secretary said. 'There is much evidence still to be led in that inquiry and I would not, I certainly cannot, prejudge or seem to cut across in any way, the work of a public inquiry.' On lessons that have been learned, the Health Secretary pointed to NHS Assure, an agency set up to assess risk in the NHS estate, which he said was 'about making sure that every single stage of the commissioning of a health infrastructure programme that we have assurance as to the safety and to the practicality of a health project'. He added: 'I believe that is giving us much greater assurance as to the safety that Jackie Baillie is looking for.'
