In January 2008, the CMO and Chief Executive of NHS QIS, Sir Graham Teasdale, wrote to all Health Boards requiring them to address, “as a matter of urgency”, their VTE prevention policies. This followed the finding in a report by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman that the four relevant specialities across NHS Scotland lacked written, up-to-date protocols and policies on the prevention of VTE.

Following the NHS QIS ‘NHS Board Implementation Follow-Up Report’ published in December 2008, which identified that Boards were implementing actions to address failings in VTE policies and patient information leaflets, it was hoped that the results would demonstrate significant progress on the issue. All Health Boards bar one stated they have a written policy to risk assess all patients on admission BUT there are clear outcomes from the survey which identify key areas for improvement