R74 Response Accepted

Review of UK IPC reports

Recommendation

Scottish Government (whether through HPS, HIS, the HAI Task Force or otherwise) should as a matter of standard practice ensure that reports published in the UK and in other relevant jurisdictions on infection prevention and control and patient safety are reviewed as soon as possible.

Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
- The Scottish Government published its response to the Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry Report on 18 June 2015, accepting all 75 recommendations and establishing an Implementation Group chaired by the Chief Nursing Officer (Scottish Government Response, June 2015).
- The Scottish Government's response highlighted the requirement for NHS boards to ensure that reports from the UK and other jurisdictions on IPC and patient safety are reviewed promptly. The HCAI Strategy 2023-2025 includes learning and improvement as core elements, with ARHAI Scotland facilitating the sharing of lessons across NHS boards (Scottish HCAI Strategy 2023-2025 (https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-healthcare-associated-infection-hcai-strategy-2023-2025/)).
- Healthcare Improvement Scotland's role includes reviewing and disseminating findings from inquiries, reports, and international evidence to support continuous improvement in patient safety across NHS Scotland.
- The Scottish Patient Safety Programme provides a framework for embedding learning from incidents, reports, and inspections into routine practice.
How was this evidence gathered?
Evidence searched by Claude (Anthropic) on 10 Apr 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
Jurisdiction
Scotland
Response
Accepted
Accepted Scottish Government
18 Jun 2015

Section 2.1 notes the report's call for the Scottish Government to ensure timely review and implementation of relevant measures from existing inquiry reports, including those from other jurisdictions, as a matter of standard practice (recommendation 74). While the response outlines various national initiatives, oversight, and scrutiny mechanisms for HAI practice and patient safety, it does not explicitly detail a standard practice or agency responsible for routinely reviewing reports published in the UK and other jurisdictions on infection prevention and control and patient safety. Chapter 5 emphasizes learning lessons from the Lord MacLean's report and incorporating its recommendations into quality, scrutiny, and improvement processes.

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Published Evidence

Published assessments of progress from inspectorates, select committees, official progress reports, and other sources. Source type badge indicates whether each assessment is independent or government self-reported.

Good Progress
01 Jan 2025
ARHAI Scotland Other

ARHAI Scotland (Antimicrobial Resistance and Healthcare Associated Infection Scotland) serves as the national body reviewing UK and international IPC reports as standard practice. Provides evidence synthesis for NIPCM updates and national policy development.

View detailed findings

ARHAI Scotland National Policies Guidance and Evidence Working Group continuously reviews published literature and reports to update national guidance.

ARHAI Scotland - national review function View Source
Source
Report The Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry Report 24 Nov 2014
Responsible Bodies
Scottish Government Primary
Recommendation age 11.6 yrs
Last formal update 4013 days ago