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  • Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Mark Hendrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people were waiting to be placed on a GP list in Preston constituency on the last working day of (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013 and (e) 2014.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    This information is not collected centrally. Patients are entitled to register with any general practitioner practice as long as they live within the practice’s catchment area and the practice has an open list.

  • Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what alternative provision his Department is offering to the users of the Epping Chase Surgery, Clacton for access to primary care in response to that surgery’s closure.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    The provision of primary medical services is a matter for NHS England.

    NHS England’s Essex Area Team advises that, since February 2014, the Epping Close Surgery has been temporarily relocated on Kennedy Way, Clacton, following a serious water leak at its original premises.

    To date, there have been no complaints from patients about the relocation, which has enabled the practice to continue to provide healthcare to patients.

  • Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to increase the number of practice staff working in GP surgeries in North East Essex Clinical Commissioning Group.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    There are now 36,294 full-time equivalent general practitioners (GPs) working and training in the National Health Service, an increase of 1,051 (3.0%) since September 2010 and a commitment to train and retain 5,000 additional GPs by 2020.

    NHS England is working with the North East Essex Clinical Commissioning Group, and Health Education East Of England to increase the number of practice staff working in GP surgeries across north east Essex.

    NHS England is also working with the Royal College of General Practitioners, and the British Medical Association nationally to produce a 10 point action plan to increase the size of the general practice workforce, which this Government has supported with £10 million of funding.

  • Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to increase the number of GPs in North East Essex.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    There are now 36,294 full-time equivalent general practitioners (GPs) working and training in the National Health Service, an increase of 1,051 (3.0%) since September 2010 and a commitment to train and retain 5,000 additional GPs by 2020.

    NHS England has commissioned a project specifically for the Tendring area to review the current local workforce capacity and options to correct any deficiencies in GP workforce capacity.

    NHS England, Health Education England (HEE), the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) and the British Medical Association’s (BMA) GP committee are working together nationally to ensure that we have a skilled, trained and motivated workforce in general practice. In January, NHS England announced a further £10 million investment to expand the general practice workforce.

    HEE is also working with NHS England, the BMA and RCGP to standardise a funded scheme which allows GPs to return to United Kingdom general practice following a career break. We expect this to be launched nationally at the end of March 2015. 43 doctors have already completed this scheme.

  • Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to ensure that more diagnostic tests are carried out at Clacton Hospital.

    Jane Ellison

    The provision of local health services is a matter for local National Health Service organisations. NHS North East Essex Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) advises that Clacton Hospital provides some diagnostic testing for the local population, but the variety of tests that can be effectively provided is limited. More specialised diagnostic tests, such as magnetic resonance imaging or invasive tests such as angiography or endoscopy, have to be carried out at Colchester Hospital. They are not available at Clacton Hospital either because of a lack of physical space for the facilities within the hospital or because it is not clinically appropriate for the tests to be carried out in a community hospital. Clacton Hospital has no clinical theatre space. No emergency medical cover is available should a patient become seriously unwell following an invasive diagnostic test.

    The CCG states that demand for diagnostic services is exceptionally high and it is considering how they could be provided within community settings to reduce waiting times. This might include direct access to some tests through general practitioner (GP) referral. This would enable the GP to receive a definitive test result for the patient, before referring on to secondary care where necessary. The CCG believes this would help to reduce waiting times and make access to the service easier for local people.

  • Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Douglas Carswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans his Department has to reduce waiting times for diagnostic tests at Clacton Hospital.

    Jane Ellison

    The provision of local health services is a matter for local National Health Service organisations. NHS North East Essex Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) advises that Clacton Hospital provides some diagnostic testing for the local population, but the variety of tests that can be effectively provided is limited. More specialised diagnostic tests, such as magnetic resonance imaging or invasive tests such as angiography or endoscopy, have to be carried out at Colchester Hospital. They are not available at Clacton Hospital either because of a lack of physical space for the facilities within the hospital or because it is not clinically appropriate for the tests to be carried out in a community hospital. Clacton Hospital has no clinical theatre space. No emergency medical cover is available should a patient become seriously unwell following an invasive diagnostic test.

    The CCG states that demand for diagnostic services is exceptionally high and it is considering how they could be provided within community settings to reduce waiting times. This might include direct access to some tests through general practitioner (GP) referral. This would enable the GP to receive a definitive test result for the patient, before referring on to secondary care where necessary. The CCG believes this would help to reduce waiting times and make access to the service easier for local people.

  • Graham Allen – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Graham Allen – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Allen on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people presented at A&E who were subsequently diagnosed as suffering from lung cancer in (a) the Nottingham area and (b) the UK in the last 12 months.

    Jane Ellison

    The information is not available in the format requested. However, the National Cancer Intelligence Network produces estimates of emergency cancer admissions broken down by cancer type and clinical commissioning group which is available at:

    http://www.nature.com/bjc/journal/v107/n8/full/bjc2012408a.html

    “

  • Margaret Ritchie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Margaret Ritchie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ritchie on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the diagnosis and treatment of motor neurone disease.

    Norman Lamb

    Motor neurone disease (MND) is a rare incurable neurodegenerative condition and there are estimated to be up to 5,000 people with MND in the United Kingdom. In its early stages the disease can be difficult to diagnose because the symptoms a patient may present with, such as fatigue, clumsiness and muscle weakness are shared with more common, less serious conditions. No two people with MND will be affected in exactly the same way and there is no one test to diagnose the condition.

    To support general practitioners (GPs) to spot the potential symptoms of MND, the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGPs) and the MND Association have worked together to produce a ‘Red Flag Tool’ which sets out key signs of MND to help GPs to identify suspected cases and refer them promptly to a neurologist for appropriate investigation. The RCGP and British Medical Journal have also both produced MND e-learning courses which together cover both signs and symptoms as well disease management.

    All services for people with MND should be commissioned as a specialised service in line with NHS England’s neurosciences service specification. This sets out what providers must have in place to deliver high quality specialised neurological care.

    Specialist MND care can include a range of services such as counselling and emotional support, respiratory care, speech and language therapy, physiotherapy, respiratory secretion management, neurorehabilitation, physiotherapy and palliative care. Drugs can be used for symptom management, but riluzole is the only pharmacological drug licensed in the UK to slow the progression of MND.

    Finally, the Department has asked the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to produce a clinical guideline on MND. Development is currently underway and the guideline is anticipated for publication in February 2016.

  • Margaret Ritchie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Margaret Ritchie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ritchie on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the diagnosis and treatment of multiple sclerosis.

    Norman Lamb

    The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance Multiple sclerosis: management of multiple sclerosis in primary and secondary care, updated in October 2014, states that around 100,000 people in the United Kingdom have multiple sclerosis (MS). Estimates from studies on annual incidence are more uncertain, and vary between 2,500 and 6,000 newly diagnosed cases each year. About 85 out of 100 people with MS have relapsing–remitting MS (RRMS) where periods of stability (remission) are followed by episodes when there are exacerbations of symptoms (relapses). About 10 to 15 out of 100 people with MS have primary progressive MS where symptoms gradually develop and worsen over time from the start, without ever experiencing relapses and remissions.

    The guidance sets out a range of initial assessments a clinician should make including testing of vision and blood tests before referral to a consultant neurologist who can confirm or exclude a diagnosis of MS, subject to investigation. The guidance makes a range of recommendations on the pharmacological and non-pharmacological management of MS. NICE has recommended a number of drugs for the treatment of MS and is currently appraising Nerventra (laquinimod) for RRMS and ilenya (fingolimod) for primary-progressive MS. In addition over 18,000 patients have benefitted from disease-modifying treatments through the MS risk sharing scheme, established by the Department in 2002.

  • Andrew Percy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Percy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2015-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answers of 2 February 2015 to Questions 222495, 222494 and 222493, how many medicines were paid for by the industry rebate payments through the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme in 2014 in each (a) financial quarter and (b) therapeutic area.

    George Freeman

    The Mandate for 2015-16 has set a firm NHS England budget for 2015-16, which is £3 billion (3%) higher than its budget for 2014-15. This increase takes into account a number of things, including additional funding for the National Health Service announced in the Autumn Statement and the fact that the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) payment in 2015-16 is now forecast to be higher than originally expected.

    All the PPRS payments go back into spending on improving patients’ health and care and it will be up to NHS England how they split that overall budget between clinical commissioning groups, specialised commissioning etc. Following normal Government accounting rules, there is no separately identified ring-fenced funding stream associated with the PPRS payment. Accordingly, it would not be possible to identify what or how many medicines are paid for by PPRS payments.

    The Government believes that NHS commissioners and providers are best placed to decide how to allocate their budgets to deliver improvements in the outcomes for patients. The PPRS includes a number of commitments for improving patient outcomes and for improving patient access to clinically and cost effective medicines.