Pandemic Ready: Safeguarding Our Future Through Preparedness

Annex A - Detailed Recommendations

The Committee’s Interim Report outlined four key recommendations on Collaboration, Data, Advice and Innovation, with the recommendation for Collaboration in the form of a Scottish Pandemic Sciences Partnership at the heart of these. This Report develops these recommendations, building on the work which has taken place, and makes additional recommendations on behavioural science – a golden thread which runs through the other recommendations – and makes further recommendations in relation to the other areas.

The detailed recommendations are broken down below. These tie together within the scope of a Scottish Pandemic Sciences Partnership, the overarching component of the Committee’s recommendations.

(Table 1) Summary of Recommendations

Recommendation number and goal: 1A

Goal: to coordinate a critical mass of excellent inter-disciplinary scientific advice and capability in relation to pandemics

Recommendation

A Scottish Pandemic Sciences Partnership should be established and adequately resourced, operating at the interface between government policy, national public health and the scientific community.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

PHS to work with partners to develop a business case for the Partnership, incorporating the functions and priorities articulated in this report. The Partnership Director, once appointed, to undertake the final clearance of this before it is submitted to the SG.

Once the Partnership is operational, this should inherit the responsibility for independent scientific advice to the SG on pandemic preparedness from the Committee when this is stood down in due course. For this, the SG, PHS, and the SCoPP chair should carry out an assessment of the requirement for the continued operation of the Committee six months after the establishment of the Partnership.

Suggested lead and target date

PHS to work with partners to produce a business case. The business case to be reviewed by the Partnership Director once appointed and submitted to the SG by end of March 2025.

The SG, PHS and the Committee chair to review the need for the continued operation of the Committee six months after the establishment of the Partnership.

Recommendation number and goal: 1B

Goal: national leadership for pandemic sciences

Recommendation

A Scientific Director be competitively appointed, providing leadership to the Partnership and having responsibility for establishing the Partnership, leading the business case development, and building and maintaining links with the academic and wider research communities.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

PHS, supported by the CSA and the CS(H), to undertake a competitive recruitment to appoint a Director.

Suggested lead and target date

PHS, within six months of the publication of this report.

Recommendation number and goal: 1C

Goal: clarity of accountability and governance for pandemic science advice

Recommendation

The SG and PHS lead work to develop the governance and funding model for PHS to host the Partnership, which includes the representation of the research community and supports the provision of data, evidence and advice on pandemic preparedness. The Committee recommends the Partnership should report to the SG lead Minister with accountability for future pandemic preparedness.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

The SG and PHS should agree the governance and funding model for PHS to host the Partnership and which enables the commissioning and coordination of research and advice on pandemics.

An Advisory Board (AB) to the Partnership to be established, with senior Scottish, UK and international representation. This should undertake an annual assessment of the progress of the Partnership’s work, reporting to the SG Ministers with accountability for future pandemic preparedness.

Suggested lead and target date

PHS and the SG by the end of March 2025.

Recommendation number and goal: 2A

Goal: to maintain effective pandemic science capability between pandemics

Recommendation

The Partnership promotes, supports, and contributes to research programmes that deliver policy-relevant research in periods between pandemics and, crucially, helps maintain and support activities that will be needed during a pandemic. This should be done in partnership with existing learned institutions and bodies, such as the SSAC, the RSE, and the CSO, and CSA office.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

The Partnership Director should commission a review of gaps in research relating to pandemic preparedness in Scotland. This should be used to commission research and support researchers to obtain funding for research in these areas.

The Partnership Director should, with input from the SCoPP, PHS, and the SG set out a strategy for the Partnership articulating its mission and the key priority areas over the next five years, with a plan for the annual reporting of progress and review of these priorities, and a plan for the reprioritisation of work in the event of a pandemic.

Suggested lead and target date

The Partnership Director, with input from the SCoPP, PHS, and SG.

Within 6 months of the formal establishment of the Partnership.

Recommendation number and goal: 2B

Goal: to ensure the connectedness of pandemic expertise to the Scottish Government

Recommendation

The Partnership supports the SG to identify and maintain links with a network of experts from Scotland, the UK, and internationally.

The Partnership should maintain engagement with these through a programme of events on themes relating to pandemic preparedness.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

The Director should establish links to Scottish, UK and international bodies, such as the RSE and the UK Pandemic Sciences Network, to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and interconnectedness of scientific and advisory communities.

The Partnership to plan a schedule of events for its first year, aimed at bringing together the academic and research community to foster relationships. Options for these include, but are not limited to, the establishment of a quarterly speaker series, an annual conference, and participation in a table-top exercise on pandemic preparedness in Scotland.

Suggested lead and target date

The Partnership Director, supported by PHS.

Within 6 months of the formal establishment of the Partnership with a regular programme of events planned thereafter.

Recommendation number and goal: 3A

Goal: to enable whole system intelligence to support research and surveillance for pandemics in Scotland

Recommendation

The SG, following public engagement and advice from the CMO, implement a notice to notify healthcare organisations, GPs, local authorities and arm's-length bodies that they should share information with PHS to support efforts against future pandemics.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

To assemble a streamlined, trustworthy pandemic data ecosystem for Scotland, hosted by PHS and supported by RDS, enabling Scotland wide data analysis.

Suggested lead and target date

SG Health and Social Care Directorate and PHS, reporting to the CMO by March 2025.

Recommendation number and goal: 3B

Goal: a single point of access and approval for data access

Recommendation

That a single, standardised data access and approvals process be implemented for Scotland. This should cover all controllers of data generated through health and care service delivery and publicly funded research activity.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

This should cover all controllers of data generated through publicly funded research activity and health and care service delivery. It should be based around the Five Safes^[27] and operate as equivalent to the research ethics process, with a single Research Ethics Committee for Scotland approval deemed sufficient for all controllers of data required for the research. This should ensure patients and the public are involved in decision making.

Suggested lead and target date

PHS and RDS by September 2025.

Recommendation number and goal: 3C

Goal: transparency of data use to demonstrate trustworthiness

Recommendation

That RDS is supported as the national research data service to enable all publicly funded health data research projects relevant to pandemics to make their data and code available for re-use via secure data environments. These should have access decisions managed through the single streamlined process outlined in recommendation 3B.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

A publicly searchable and integrated catalogue of datasets and data items available in the national research data services, with synthetic versions of datasets available on demand for researchers.

A searchable public 'data use register' to show all uses made of publicly funded data for research, who is accessing data, for what purpose and the outcome of that use.

Development of new datasets and data governance approaches, following engagement with the public, patients, service users and data controllers.

The data services should be developed in ways to enable integration with UK initiatives including Administrative Data Research UK (ADR UK) and HDR UK.

Suggested lead and target date

PHS and RDS by September 2025.

Recommendation number and goal: 3D

Goal: transparent data strategy to meet analysis needs of a future pandemic

Recommendation

The Partnership leads work with partners to produce a pandemic data and intelligence strategy which identifies priority datasets, including from the behavioural sciences, for future pandemic response and which includes a readiness assessment of their usability.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

The pandemic data and intelligence strategy should build on the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic to identify priority datasets (including behavioural and social science datasets) required for future pandemic preparedness and response. The strategy should categorise these based on their relative importance and their current readiness, according to the FAIR principles.

Suggested lead and target date

The Partnership to appoint a Short-Life Working Group (SLWG), drawing on RDS, PHS and other key partners.

The SLWG should report to the Partnership Director within 12 months of receiving its commission, setting out the strategy, the assessment of current readiness and articulating the actions required to deliver the strategy.

Recommendation number and goal: 4A

Goal: coordination and enablement of innovation relevant to pandemics in Scotland

Recommendation

The CSO and CSA office, with the support of the Partnership, review and identify mechanisms to support academia, industry, and wider partners to encourage innovation for future pandemic preparedness and response in Scotland and articulate a mechanism for existing rapid-adoption pathways to pivot to consider innovations during future pandemics.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

The aim is to articulate a mechanism for innovation development, review, and rapid-adoption pathways to pivot to consider innovations during future pandemics; ensuring this is well understood in advance of these.

Suggested lead and target date

The SG. led by the CSO and reporting to the Partnership Director, and within 12 months of the publication of this report.

Recommendation number and goal: 4B

Goal: horizon scanning of new technologies relevant to pandemic science

Recommendation

The SG and the Partnership formalise a horizon-scanning function, to support the flow of advice into government. This should include the involvement of the Partnership in SG’s assessment of pandemic and emerging infectious disease risks.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

As part of its strategy, the Partnership should support a review of existing horizon-scanning intelligence in Scotland to identify opportunities to bolster this. The review should consider both Scottish and UK horizon-scanning which the SG and PHS receive, as well as international intelligence received by these.

The aim will be to improve, where applicable, the flow of information between the participants in the Partnership. This should focus on human infectious diseases but establish links to other One Health and animal health horizon-scanning initiatives where relevant.

Suggested lead and target date

The Partnership Director, working with PHS and the SG.

Recommendation number and goal: 5A

Goal: to ensure equity in pandemic preparedness

Recommendation

The SG develops a rapid assessment process which scrutinises crisis policies’ impacts on marginalised and deprived communities.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

The aim is to put mechanisms in place to ensure the needs of these groups are taken into consideration in the design of interventions in future pandemics, and that the likely impact of these interventions on these groups is recorded. The rapid assessment process should take into account work already underway to improve and integrate existing impact assessments across the SG.

Suggested lead and target date

The SG, drawing on learnings from the UK and Scottish COVID-19 inquiries, with input from stakeholders.

Reporting to the Partnership Director within 12 months of the publication of this report.

Recommendation number and goal: 5B

Goal: to develop capability to address misinformation

Recommendation

The Partnership work with the SG and PHS to create a rapid response mechanism to identify and address the cross-cutting challenges posed by misinformation around pandemics.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

The aim is to build Scotland’s resilience to misinformation and the impacts of this on pandemic preparedness and response.

The Partnership will lead work with experts to propose a rapid response mechanism that can be used during pandemics to address misinformation.

In parallel, work should also consider interventions and programmes needed during non- pandemic times to build Scotland’s resilience to misinformation.

Suggested lead and target date

The SG, with input from the Partnership, to produce an action plan for this within 12 months of the publication of this report.

Recommendation number and goal: 5C

Goal: to develop effective and meaningful public engagement in relation to pandemics

Recommendation

The Partnership works with community anchor groups to provide advice, expertise and resources to enable the maintenance of mutual aid in a crisis and to develop a flexible and fast-acting engagement process which includes those who are most marginalised.

What we should aim for and how we should get there

The SG should build on existing resilience arrangements to develop a pathway for engagement with and support of community anchor group as part of future pandemic preparedness and response arrangements. This should include mapping of these groups and co-production to establish the most effective mechanism for engagement of these groups, to support the maintenance of mutual aid during pandemic emergencies.

Suggested lead and target date

The SG to lead engagement with community anchor groups and provide an update on this to the Partnership within 12 months of the publication of this report.

This work should support community anchor groups across a range of threats and emergencies, including pandemics. Health protection officials in the SG should engage with their resilience and civil contingencies colleagues in the development of this work.