For Healthcare Science Week, Professor Catherine Ross, Chief Scientific Officer for Scotland, provides an update on the priorities of the Scottish Government.
Healthcare Science Week gives us an opportunity to shine the light on our scientific workforce across the NHS, recognising – and celebrating – the critical contribution that they make to ensure the best possible outcomes for patients.
As the fourth largest professional group working in the NHS, healthcare scientists are clinical and scientific experts who have unique skills which underpin clinical decision making and the delivery of people’s care and treatment.
As Chief Scientific Officer for Scotland, I am clear that our scientific workforce are absolutely essential to the delivery of high quality services now, and as we support the reform and renewal of the NHS in Scotland, and in order to meet the evolving needs of our population, the skills and expertise of our healthcare scientists will be critical.
In March 2024 the Scottish Government set out its strategic approach to healthcare science, demonstrating our commitment to ensuring that the profession is best placed to respond to the population health needs of the people of Scotland now and in the future.
We described a vision for healthcare science in Scotland, and set out ambitions to guide the activity that will be taken to not only increase the visibility of our workforce, but also to improve the understanding of what healthcare scientists do and how they can lead innovation in the delivery of services.
Over the course of the year since the publication of that document, that commitment has strengthened. Despite operating in one of the most financially challenging landscapes since devolution, the Scottish Government has undertaken significant work to advance healthcare science, and our scientific workforce.
On healthcare science education – we convened a group to undertake a review of healthcare science education provision in Scotland. This identified areas of activity where improvement can be undertaken to strengthen the foundations of healthcare science education and training.
On workforce, we are strengthening the professional identity of our healthcare scientists. This sits hand in hand with activity which will enable us to be able to map our scientific workforce in NHS Scotland more accurately – supporting how we will undertake better workforce planning for the future.
These pieces of work do not sit remotely from each other – outputs from one will feed the other and vice-versa. It is absolutely vital to ensure that any data and intelligence gathered is considered and applied in the development and delivery of all our work.
Collaboration, in supporting the gathering and use of that data to make improvements to healthcare science in Scotland, is absolutely key. Our approach has been, and will continue to be, one which brings people together to consider the challenges and work collectively to find solutions. In practice, we have established a network to support this collaboration – for the first time bringing together the voices of those working in the NHS, professional bodies and other key stakeholders.
As Chief Scientific Officer, I am committed to nurturing and growing that network by facilitating opportunities for those groups that are part of it, to develop leadership which will also help us realise one of the ambitions set out in our strategic approach – that healthcare scientists are leaders in the NHS who spearhead innovation.
In growing this collaboration within the wider system, it is equally important to enhance collaboration between policy-makers and senior decision makers within government. We are making exceptional progress in this space. As I have described already, I am clear that our scientific workforce are absolutely essential to the delivery of high quality services now. In respect of the scope and need to evolve for the future, the Scottish Government will continue to ensure that healthcare science is fully considered in wider discussions on NHS reform and renewal. This will help ensure the best possible outcomes for our population.
Finally, as I have reflected on the significant pieces of strategic work underway, and still to come, I want to add my gratitude for the work our healthcare scientists do each and every day to ensure the safe and effective delivery of services to patients across the country.