Surgeries - FOI Response Register

1. Please outline how many times in the last five years (since March 2020) that you have been contacted by a patient who has received private surgery while on the waiting list for elective surgery via your health board and who has requested your health board subsequently contribute towards the cost of the private surgery.

<5

Where we have answered ‘<5’, this is because NHS Shetland considers that providing more specific information carries a high risk of identifying individuals. As such and in accordance with FOISA s 16(1), NHS Shetland confirms that it holds the information requested but that it is exempt from disclosure under FOISA s 38(1)(b) as read with s 38 (2A) as the information constitutes personal data and disclosure would breach the confidentiality of the data subjects.

2. Out of these claims, please outline how many times your health board has agreed to compensate for the surgery and how many it has refused.

The Board has not agreed to pay any contributions

3. Please also provide a summary of what the elective surgery was for.

We are unable to provide this information because NHS Shetland considers that providing more specific information carries a high risk of identifying individuals. As such and in accordance with FOISA s 16(1), NHS Shetland confirms that it holds the information requested but that it is exempt from disclosure under FOISA s 38(1)(b) as read with s 38 (2A) as the information constitutes personal data and disclosure would breach the confidentiality of the data subjects.

4. Please also outline how many times since March 2020, where the Scottish Public Service Ombudsman has found that your health board should calculate and reimburse a patient who has received private surgery while awaiting NHS surgery.

N/A

5. Please supply a financial figure as to how much money in total your health board has paid directly to patients who have received private surgery while awaiting elective surgery via your health board since March 2020.

N/A