Issue - meetings

Question from Janice O Doherty

 

Recently my Mum had a bad fall whilst walking on a footpath in Dunbeg.  I want to give thanks to the people in Dunbeg who helped my Mum that day and also thank Councillor McKenzie for raising a case on behalf of my Mum and our family, following her fall and the unacceptable amount of time that she was made to wait for an emergency response.

 

I wish to ask if local councillors are aware of any issues within our local community, in relation to Scottish Ambulance Service emergency response time, staffing and emergency vehicle provision?

 

I also wish to raise the issue of continuity of emergency care being offered by medical practices in the local area, given the fact that the Taynuilt Medical Practice refused to get involved in assisting my Mum during her unacceptable wait for an ambulance to arrive.

 

Response from Committee

 

The Committee Manager confirmed that he had received the following response from the Scottish Ambulance Service:

 

“Oban ambulance station was given additional funding to end on call commitments which now means it has 2 x 24-hour vehicles, the service will always endeavour in covering all shifts but naturally throughout the pandemic has resulted in shifts being uncovered like all other organisations , in the event of there being no ambulance within the Oban area due to operational demand then Lochgilphead would be dispatched if available. 

 

On receipt of a 999 call the call is triage using the recognized "Manchester triage tool", this ensures the appropriate response is provided, on completion of the triage will determine the level of response which also activates the opportunity to use an alternative pathway which includes falls screening to prevent non requirement attendance to a hospital.

 

MTS is the abbreviation for the Manchester tool kit that gives a triage score, this was introduced by the Medical Director and is used across all services in Britain. 

 

All triaging is being carried out by telephone initially and then the use of video calling is used to allow eyes on the patient to gain a more in-depth history if the patient consents as well as signal coverage, the Advanced Paramedic who is embedded within the ambulance control room has the authority to upgrade the call if required.”

 

Members expressed their dissatisfaction to the response of the Scottish Ambulance Service and concern around the lack of correlation between the services involved. 

 

Councillor McKenzie advised that she had written to the Chief Officer of the Health and Social Care Partnership seeking an urgent review into the matter, and requested that the outcome be reported to Elected Members. 

 

The Chair asked that the outcome of the review be made available to the parties involved in the distressing incident.

 

Question from Alison Craig, Comann nam Pàrant an Òbain

 

Ms Craig spoke of her distress at finding a number of Gaelic educational resources in a skip outside the Education Centre in Oban and the subsequent publicity that followed this discovery.  Ms Craig read the apology she had received from the Council which included an undertaking to undertake a review of the situation.  Ms Craig sought assistance from the Area Committee in the distribution of the reclaimed resources and also enquired as to what they could do to change the views of the Council in regards to the importance of the Gaelic provision.

 

Response from the Committee

 

Having discussed the matter and expressing their concern over the manner in which the disposal of books and resources was handled by the Education Service, Members confirmed their support to Gaelic culture and agreed that Ms Craig and other interested parties be invited to attend a future Business Day meeting of the Area Committee to discuss the importance and future direction of the Gaelic education and provision in the Oban, Lorn and the Isles area. 

 

Question from Marri Malloy, Oban Community Council

 

Ms Malloy expressed her concern over the lack of contact from the Roads and Infrastructure Service following the question posed at the last meeting of the Area Committee regarding the Oban Traffic Regulation Order (TRO). 

 

Response from Committee

 

The Chair confirmed that she had actively pursued this matter and that Ms Malloy’s concerns would be passed to the appropriate officer with a request from the Area Committee that a response to the original question be provided within 7 days. 

 

Questions from Duncan Martin, Oban Community Council

 

1.    At the last meeting an undertaking was given that the process leading to a new TRO for Oban would be restarted and that we would receive a reply to the email we had sent a few weeks previously.  We have not been contacted in the subsequent three months.  Can the Area Committee insist that officers respond to emails and deliver on the undertakings they have given?

 

2.    The report to last week's Harbour Board is on the agenda. The Board realised that the information in this report fell far short of what had been promised at the December meeting, and therefore decided that an additional meeting had to be scheduled before the Council elections.  Has a date for this been established? Oban Community Council is keen that the process of creating a new harbour authority takes place as quickly as possible while maintaining the stakeholder engagement which the rules mandate.

 

3.    There seems to be an established policy that Roads do not comment on Planning Applications unless they are likely to generate a substantial increase in traffic, 10% I believe.  This allows repeated independent applications to be made along a road (eg the back road to Connel) without any consideration of the cumulative effect on traffic. Was this policy decided by the PPSL Committee or internally by Officers?

 

Response from Committee

 

The Chair confirmed that Mr Martin’s questions would be forwarded to the appropriate department and a response in writing would be issued to him.