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  • Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make it his policy that scientists and technicians working in the health sector should be registered with a professional body such as the Science Council.

    Ben Gummer

    There are no plans to require scientists and technicians working in the health sector to register with a professional body such as the Science Council. While voluntary registration schemes, such as those overseen by the Science Council, provide an important mechanism for assuring the standards of professional staff, it is a matter for individual staff and their employing organisation as to how they make use of the assurance provided by voluntary registration schemes.

  • Derek Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Derek Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Thomas on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to support healthcare professionals working in the NHS to continue to undertake research.

    George Freeman

    The Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) improves the health and wealth of the nation through research. Part of the NIHR is the Faculty.

    The Faculty empowers and develops the NIHR community of research professionals, to improve the nation’s health, wellbeing and prosperity. The Faculty achieves this by creating a sense of common purpose and identity around shared values that cut across organisational and professional boundaries.

    The NIHR Faculty comprises three categories of membership: Investigators (including Senior Investigators), Associates and Trainees. The Faculty encompasses research, clinical and support staff from all relevant professional backgrounds.

    Since 2006 the NIHR:

    ― has made Senior Investigators awards to 338 individuals through nine competitions;

    ― has supported 10,593 unique trainees through fellowships and through the NIHR Infrastructure;

    ― has supported 5,920 unique Investigators through research contracts and the NIHR Infrastructure;

    ― has supported 2,355 unique Principal Investigators through research contracts;

    ― has supported 3,926 unique Investigators within the NIHR Infrastructure; and

    ― has supported 4,652 Associates in the NIHR Infrastructure.

    The number of eligible clinical professional groups able to benefit from the training programmes targeted at allied health professionals and nurses has increased by 50% since 2006.

  • Sarah Wollaston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sarah Wollaston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many full-time equivalent staff in his Department were working on breastfeeding in each year from 2010 to 2016.

    Ben Gummer

    Following the discontinuation of the Infant Feeding Survey, the Department has been exploring with Public Health England (PHE) and other key stakeholders alternative methods and sources of information to monitor the impact of its policy on infant feeding.

    In future, the Maternity and Children’s Dataset will regularly capture data on breastfeeding initiation and prevalence from all women using NHS services rather than using a survey sample. This means that local service providers and commissioners can have up-to-date (e.g. quarterly) information about outcomes for their local populations, enabling service provision to be more agile, responsive and targeted.

    The Government is committed to supporting breastfeeding through the Healthy Child Programme. Breastfeeding is also included in the Public Health Outcomes Framework so that the improvements can be tracked, and action taken as needed.

    Since 2010, we have recruited more than 2,100 additional midwives who will provide women with the information, advice and support they need with breastfeeding. A further 6,000 midwives are in training. There are also 3,400 more health visitors than in 2010.

    The Department is working with PHE, NHS England and UNICEF to try and encourage women to breastfeed for the first six months, although we recognise that not all mothers choose to or are able to breastfeed.

    Support and information is currently available to health professionals and parents through NHS Choices, the National Breastfeeding Helpline, UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative, the Start4Life Information Service for Parents and local peer support programmes.

    The Department has not retained a record of how many full-time equivalent staff there were with a specific focus on breastfeeding between 2010 and 2016; breastfeeding policy has always formed part of the larger maternity policy for which the Department has the policy lead. Resources to cover this policy area would have fluctuated according the level of work required at any one time.

  • Sarah Wollaston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sarah Wollaston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will ensure that the benefits of breastfeeding will be included in the upcoming obesity strategy.

    Jane Ellison

    Our Childhood Obesity Strategy, which will be launched in the summer, will look at everything that contributes to a child becoming overweight and obese.

  • Fiona Bruce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Fiona Bruce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Answer of 11 March 2016 to Question 29747, whether wider disclosure of the content of the personal email exchange between Professor Grifo and a member of the expert panel convened by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority would breach patient confidentiality.

    Jane Ellison

    The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has advised that wider disclosure of the content of the personal email exchange between Professor Grifo and a member of the expert panel convened by the Authority would not breach patient confidentiality. The HFEA has previously advised that the relevant expert panel member contacted Professor Grifo in a personal capacity following the third Scientific Review of the safety and efficacy of methods to avoid mitochondrial disease in 2014.

    The HFEA has also advised that the information in question was provided in confidence to the expert panel convened by the Authority. Members of the HFEA Executive who provided administrative support to the work of the panel have seen this information.

  • Karin Smyth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Karin Smyth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karin Smyth on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many applications for registration to the Nursing and Midwifery Council were rejected from candidates trained (a) in England, (b) in the European Economic Area (EEA) and (c) outside the EEA in each year since 2009-10.

    Ben Gummer

    The information requested in relation to the number of applications for registration to the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is not held centrally.

    The NMC is the independent regulator of nurses and midwives in the United Kingdom and is responsible for nurse and midwife registration. It has informed the Department that it does not collect data on how many applications for registration are rejected or withdrawn before they were assessed.

  • Jonathan Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jonathan Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Reynolds on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many formal complaints have been made about (a) patient care on and (b) the management of assessment and treatment units in each of the last five years.

    Alistair Burt

    Access to an independent mental health advocacy (IMHA) is a statutory right for people detained under most sections of the Mental Health Act, subject to Guardianship or on a community treatment order. We would expect Assessment and Treatment Units to follow their statutory obligations to ensure patients have access to an IMHA where appropriate.

    The Learning Disability Assuring Transformation statistics data shows that of the 2,565 inpatients at the end of April 2016, 600 patients had a main diagnostic category of mental illness on admission.

    Data on the numbers of formal complaints made about patient care; the management of assessment and treatment units; access to autism-specialist services and access to occupational and speech and language therapy are not held centrally. However, NHS England, Association of Directors of Adult Social Services and Local Government Association, published in October 2015, a Service Model for commissioners of health and social care services. This model sets out that when people are admitted to inpatient settings services should seek to minimise their length of stay and any admissions should be supported by a clear rationale of planned assessment and treatment with measurable outcomes. We would therefore expect all patients, irrespective of inpatient setting, to have access to the treatment and therapeutic interventions they require.

  • Jonathan Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jonathan Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Reynolds on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether patients on assessment and treatment units have access to independent mental health advocates.

    Alistair Burt

    Access to an independent mental health advocacy (IMHA) is a statutory right for people detained under most sections of the Mental Health Act, subject to Guardianship or on a community treatment order. We would expect Assessment and Treatment Units to follow their statutory obligations to ensure patients have access to an IMHA where appropriate.

    The Learning Disability Assuring Transformation statistics data shows that of the 2,565 inpatients at the end of April 2016, 600 patients had a main diagnostic category of mental illness on admission.

    Data on the numbers of formal complaints made about patient care; the management of assessment and treatment units; access to autism-specialist services and access to occupational and speech and language therapy are not held centrally. However, NHS England, Association of Directors of Adult Social Services and Local Government Association, published in October 2015, a Service Model for commissioners of health and social care services. This model sets out that when people are admitted to inpatient settings services should seek to minimise their length of stay and any admissions should be supported by a clear rationale of planned assessment and treatment with measurable outcomes. We would therefore expect all patients, irrespective of inpatient setting, to have access to the treatment and therapeutic interventions they require.

  • Neil Coyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Neil Coyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Neil Coyle on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the timetable is for the Specialised Services Committee of NHS England announcing its position on commissioning pre-exposure drug prophyaxis for HIV for the at-risk population.

    Jane Ellison

    The outcome of this decision is expected at the end of May and NHS England will be communicating with stakeholders following the meeting of the Specialised Services Committee.

  • Jonathan Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jonathan Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Reynolds on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether patients on assessment and treatment units have access to (a) occupational therapy and (b) speech and language therapy.

    Alistair Burt

    Access to an independent mental health advocacy (IMHA) is a statutory right for people detained under most sections of the Mental Health Act, subject to Guardianship or on a community treatment order. We would expect Assessment and Treatment Units to follow their statutory obligations to ensure patients have access to an IMHA where appropriate.

    The Learning Disability Assuring Transformation statistics data shows that of the 2,565 inpatients at the end of April 2016, 600 patients had a main diagnostic category of mental illness on admission.

    Data on the numbers of formal complaints made about patient care; the management of assessment and treatment units; access to autism-specialist services and access to occupational and speech and language therapy are not held centrally. However, NHS England, Association of Directors of Adult Social Services and Local Government Association, published in October 2015, a Service Model for commissioners of health and social care services. This model sets out that when people are admitted to inpatient settings services should seek to minimise their length of stay and any admissions should be supported by a clear rationale of planned assessment and treatment with measurable outcomes. We would therefore expect all patients, irrespective of inpatient setting, to have access to the treatment and therapeutic interventions they require.