The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information his Department holds on whether there is a link between the number of years of e-cigarette use and those people smoking tobacco in the future.
Jane Ellison
The Department does not hold data on this.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gloria De Piero on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much (a) Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and (b) Nottingham University Hospitals spent on agency nurses in the last three financial years.
Alistair Burt
This information is not available centrally. Information about spending on agency nurses by Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust may be obtained from the Trust. As it is a foundation trust, we have written to Sean Lyons, Chair of the Trust, informing him of the hon. Member’s enquiry. He will reply shortly and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.
Information about spending on agency nurses by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust may be held locally by the Trust. The hon. Member may wish to approach them directly with this query.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 21 April 2016 to Question 34094, if he will provide examples of what his Department might consider an adequate justification for clinical commissioning groups not investing in mental health services as planned.
Alistair Burt
The Mental Health Taskforce report was published on 15 February 2016. The taskforce marks a big step towards our ambition of parity of esteem for mental and physical health. The spending of clinical commissioning group (CCG) resources on mental health as indicated in proportionate increases to general CCG spending is a priority for the Department.
Mental Health Parity of Esteem is a key plan metric for NHS England and any commissioners not planning to achieve this are being scrutinised locally at regional level and centrally at director level. NHS England’s central and regional teams are working with local commissioners to assure that spend on mental health services increases in line with the growth in each organisations programme allocation other than in exceptional circumstances.
In assessing whether a case is exceptional, consideration is made of the level of medium term investment in mental health services by individual commissioners and instances where individual commissioners are working with other commissioners to increase spend for the wider health economy. But any such instances will require clear evidence that will be scrutinised as part of the assurance process.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to encourage mothers and GPs to use the Baby Check app developed by Birmingham Community Healthcare and the Lullaby Trust.
Ben Gummer
The Department has asked NHS England to review the Baby Check app to see if it could potentially make a good case study to highlight it on their Innovation Connect portal for consideration by all National Health Service organisations.
The Innovation Connect portal can be found at:
http://www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/innovation/innovation-connect/
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans NHS England has to conduct a public consultation on the commissioning of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis.
Jane Ellison
NHS England is in the process of reconsidering its decision in relation to the commissioning of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). The outcome of this decision, which is expected at the end of May, will determine whether NHS England will then conduct any form of public consultation on the commissioning of PrEP.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to reduce variation across the UK in access to surgical and transcatheter interventions for heart valve disease.
Jane Ellison
NHS England is working with professionals across the healthcare system to look at ways in which services and outcomes for patients with heart valve disease can be improved further, for example, by encouraging practitioners to follow clinical guidelines.
Service specifications and policy for the surgical and interventional treatment of heart valve disease are published by NHS England’s Cardiothoracic Clinical Reference Group. These define what NHS England expects to be in place in order for providers to offer evidence-based, safe and effective services. NHS England is working on the next iteration of the specifications, which will include important standards relating to mitral valve surgery.
In addition, NHS England is holding a clinical summit on 15 June 2016, which will bring together cardiologists and cardiac surgeons to examine the issues relating to heart valve disease, including variation. Outputs from discussions will be used to inform the future commissioning approach within specialised commissioning.
Information on the number of people with an undiagnosed heart valve condition is not collected centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent representations he has received from care home operators about their financial viability.
Alistair Burt
The Government continues to engage with the care sector, including care providers, to understand their concerns about their financial viability and the sustainability of services.
The trade bodies Care England and the United Kingdom Home Care Association have convened a provider Taskforce, with membership from the larger care home and home care operators and representatives from the Care Providers Alliance. Officials from the Department of Health, and other Government departments attend the taskforce meetings as observers. The most recent meeting was held on 9 May 2016, where discussions were held about risks to financial viability, local authority commissioning and the impact of the introduction of the National Living Wage.
The Department is working closely with the Local Government Association to consider targeted action to address the issues.
The Department is not aware of any specific representations from care home providers in West Sussex about their future financial viability.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support workplace incentives to promote employee health and reduce sickness-related unemployment.
Justin Tomlinson
We plan to publish a Green Paper later this year, which will set out reforms to improve support for people with health conditions and disabilities, including exploring the roles of employers.
Employers are key partners in our ambition to halve the disability employment gap, reduce sick absence and promote employee health.
Support is offered to employers through initiatives such as Access to Work and Disability Confident which help employers to recruit and retain people with a disability.
Public Health England supports local authorities in the provision of a range of resources and services for employers in the area of preventing ill health, including the Workplace Wellbeing Charter.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent representations he has received from care home operators in West Sussex about their future financial viability.
Alistair Burt
The Government continues to engage with the care sector, including care providers, to understand their concerns about their financial viability and the sustainability of services.
The trade bodies Care England and the United Kingdom Home Care Association have convened a provider Taskforce, with membership from the larger care home and home care operators and representatives from the Care Providers Alliance. Officials from the Department of Health, and other Government departments attend the taskforce meetings as observers. The most recent meeting was held on 9 May 2016, where discussions were held about risks to financial viability, local authority commissioning and the impact of the introduction of the National Living Wage.
The Department is working closely with the Local Government Association to consider targeted action to address the issues.
The Department is not aware of any specific representations from care home providers in West Sussex about their future financial viability.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Blackman on 2016-05-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many tests for Vitamin D were carried out by pathology laboratories in England in (a) 2015-16, (b) 2014-15 and (c) 2013-14; and what the cost to the NHS was of providing such tests in each of those years.
Jane Ellison
This information is not held centrally. Clinical commissioning groups are responsible for commissioning laboratory testing locally.