A TB Action Plan for Scotland

6. Monitoring and Ensuring Progress

6.1 The Scottish Government has established the TB Action Plan as means of delivering on its ambition to reduce the incidence of the disease in Scotland through high quality clinical, laboratory and public health services underpinned by the highest quality surveillance available and at a time when a number of factors are increasing the number of cases in Scotland. The recommendations within this Action Plan are testing and demanding and commitment and drive is required to ensure progress is maintained and outcomes are achieved.

6.2 The Working Group recommends that an Action Plan Monitoring Group should be established by the Scottish Government to monitor progress against recommendations and to provide advice to Ministers, NHS Boards or other delivery partners to ensure the ambition of this Action Plan is achieved.

6.3 This group should meet at least annually and should have a small membership so as to be as effective as possible. It should chaired by a Senior Medical Officer of the Scottish Government and suggested membership, in addition to Government officials, should include (at a minimum):

• Health Protection Scotland
• A representative of the Consultants in Public Health Medicine
• A representative of Infectious Disease Consultants
• A representative of Respiratory Medicine Consultants
• A representative of the TB Nurses Group
• At least one NHS Board multidisciplinary team lead

6.4 The group should establish key performance indicators ( KPIs) for the recommendations within the Action Plan where appropriate, to enable measurement of progress.

6.5 The group should report annually to Ministers on overall progress in delivery of the Action Plan, or by exception in the case of particular problems.

6.6 The group should provide a report on progress to the national annual meeting of TB clinicians/nurses.

6.7 It will be a function of the group to consider the continued relevance of recommendations in future years, to review progress and to provide advice to Ministers on future policy on TB management in Scotland.