Transvaginal Mesh (Amendment 2)
S6M-10915.2: As an amendment to motion S6M-10915 in the name of Jenni Minto (Transvaginal Mesh), insert at end “; is concerned by the long waits for a first appointment at the Complex Mesh Surgical Service, whilst some women have reported a lack of clarity around accessing the full range of support available for mesh-related injuries; regrets that not all of the recommendations of the reviews by Professor Britton have been implemented; agrees that a realistic medicine approach is essential going forward, where patients are empowered and supported to be in control of their healthcare, and calls on the Scottish Government to set out how it will eradicate long waits for appointments and ensure that women affected by transvaginal mesh are informed and able to easily access the range of support available, which should be person-centred and trauma-informed ongoing care, and to publish both a strategy for increased surgical training and capacity building in alternative procedures to mesh, and data on waiting times for alternative procedures.”

Original motion(S6M-10915):
That the Parliament welcomes the report of the independent Transvaginal Mesh Case Record Review; acknowledges the severe and painful complications endured by women after the implantation of transvaginal mesh and regrets that their trauma may have been exacerbated by initial service responses that doubted their lived experiences; notes the continuing improvement in support, informed by the views of affected women, offered by the specialist mesh surgical service at the New Victoria Hospital in Glasgow in particular and NHS Scotland in general, in ways well aligned with the recommendations of Professor Britton’s review; further notes the Chief Medical Officer’s request of NHS boards to sustain good practice in the seeking and recording of patients’ informed consent and to be assured locally that affected women are able to access the national mesh removal referral pathway, and supports the Scottish Government’s continuing commitment to offering women a choice of surgeon, if mesh removal surgery is considered appropriate, and to reimbursing women who had previously arranged qualifying mesh removal surgery privately.