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  • Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 18 September 2015 to Question 8917, what recent assessment she has made of the performance of the Disclosure and Barring service; and what the average processing time is for disclosure applications.

    Karen Bradley

    The average processing time for disclosure applications was 15.3 days in December 2015, the latest month for which figures are available. The DBS operates to a target to issue 95% of disclosure certificates within 56 days (8 weeks) and 94.3% were issued within this target in December 2015.

    DBS is working closely with those forces who performance does not meet turnaround time targets.

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

    Emma Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Reynolds on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans his Department has to ensure that medical nutrition is integrated into end of life care pathways in clinical commissioning groups.

    Ben Gummer

    Information on annual National Health Service spend on medically assisted nutrition in end of life care is not held centrally.

    It is for clinicians with responsibility for the care of people at the end of life to ensure their patients receive care and treatment appropriate to their needs. Similarly, local commissioners are responsible for ensuring the services they commission meet the needs of their local populations.

    In 2014 we set out five priorities for care of the dying person which should underpin the care being delivered to all dying people. Alongside the priorities, we set out the duties and responsibilities for all staff with responsibility for looking after dying people and implementation guidance for all providers and commissioners of care. The priorities for care state that an individual plan of care, which includes food and drink, symptom control and psychological, social and spiritual support, is agreed, co-ordinated and delivered with compassion.

    In December 2015, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published guidance on the care of dying adults in the last days of life, including guidance on medical nutrition and hydration. Clinicians and commissioners should have regard to this guidance when making decisions about care for people at the end of life.

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

    Emma Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Reynolds on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps (a) his Department and (b) NHS England is taking to ensure that patients who cannot consume food in the normal way are receiving the correct treatment through tube and sip feeds.

    Ben Gummer

    Information on annual National Health Service spend on medically assisted nutrition in end of life care is not held centrally.

    It is for clinicians with responsibility for the care of people at the end of life to ensure their patients receive care and treatment appropriate to their needs. Similarly, local commissioners are responsible for ensuring the services they commission meet the needs of their local populations.

    In 2014 we set out five priorities for care of the dying person which should underpin the care being delivered to all dying people. Alongside the priorities, we set out the duties and responsibilities for all staff with responsibility for looking after dying people and implementation guidance for all providers and commissioners of care. The priorities for care state that an individual plan of care, which includes food and drink, symptom control and psychological, social and spiritual support, is agreed, co-ordinated and delivered with compassion.

    In December 2015, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published guidance on the care of dying adults in the last days of life, including guidance on medical nutrition and hydration. Clinicians and commissioners should have regard to this guidance when making decisions about care for people at the end of life.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will commission a review into the working hours of junior doctors; and if he will make a statement.

    Ben Gummer

    The Working Time Regulations provide the same protection to junior doctors as to other workers, limiting working hours to an average of 48 per week. Junior doctors, as is the case for all workers, may choose to opt-out of the Working Time Regulations and work beyond the limits; however, where they do so, their contract imposes a limit of 56 hours per week.

    The vast majority – 99% – of junior doctors are working within these current limits. Under the proposed new contract the limits on average weekly hours will continue to apply and there will also be limits that go further than the legislation including a cap on the maximum number of hours that junior doctors can work in any one week – the legislation permits 91 hours but the contract will limit this to 72. Under the new contract junior doctors will have work schedules setting out their duties, expected training opportunities and contracted hours. These will be regularly reviewed and junior doctors will be able to request a review at any time. There will be a system of exception reporting where work varies regularly and/or significantly from the work schedule. Junior doctors will also be able to report exceptions and concerns to a guardian of safe working for each organisation – whose appointment will be agreed with the British Medical Association – and request a review if they are not treated as promised.

    1% (around 500) of junior doctors has working patterns that are in breach of the current contractual limits on hours or rest. The new contract will bring an end to that.

  • Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to recruit and retain embryologists in the NHS.

    Ben Gummer

    Healthcare providers are responsible for ensuring that they have the right level of staffing to provide high quality care.

    Health Education England (HEE) has been established to ensure the National Health Service has access to the right numbers of staff, at the right time and with the right skills. In doing so, HEE works with key external stakeholders to develop its National Workforce Plan for England which sets out the number of training places it will commission in the year ahead.

    HEE will continue to work with Local Education and Training Boards and others to ensure that there are sufficient Healthcare Scientists, including embryologists, being trained to meet the needs of patients.

    Currently HEE has 28 reproductive Scientists in training (which includes embryology) and are planning a further 11 to start in 2016/17.

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

    Emma Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Reynolds on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department spent on medical nutrition in end of life care in each of the last five years; and what estimate he has made of such spending in each of the next five years.

    Ben Gummer

    Information on annual National Health Service spend on medically assisted nutrition in end of life care is not held centrally.

    It is for clinicians with responsibility for the care of people at the end of life to ensure their patients receive care and treatment appropriate to their needs. Similarly, local commissioners are responsible for ensuring the services they commission meet the needs of their local populations.

    In 2014 we set out five priorities for care of the dying person which should underpin the care being delivered to all dying people. Alongside the priorities, we set out the duties and responsibilities for all staff with responsibility for looking after dying people and implementation guidance for all providers and commissioners of care. The priorities for care state that an individual plan of care, which includes food and drink, symptom control and psychological, social and spiritual support, is agreed, co-ordinated and delivered with compassion.

    In December 2015, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published guidance on the care of dying adults in the last days of life, including guidance on medical nutrition and hydration. Clinicians and commissioners should have regard to this guidance when making decisions about care for people at the end of life.

  • David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent steps his Department has taken to increase awareness of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension.

    Jane Ellison

    One of the main symptoms of pulmonary aterial hypertension (PAH) is shortness of breath. An awareness campaign focusing on the symptoms of breathlessness to support earlier diagnosis of related conditions was piloted by Public Health England in early 2015. The results of the regional phase of the campaign are currently being evaluated.

    Furthermore, the NHS England PAH centres provide a continuing education programme at both postgraduate and undergraduate levels to educate doctors about this rare condition and the national Clinical Reference Group works closely with the PAH Patients Association to increase public awareness.

  • Ms Gisela Stuart – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Ms Gisela Stuart – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ms Gisela Stuart on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department has taken, subsequent to its accepting recommendation 274 of the Francis report on the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Public Enquiry, published on 6 February 2013, to (a) issue guidance to NHS Trusts and their legal advisers and (b) monitor implementation of that guidance on disclosure of information to coroners, patients and families.

    Ben Gummer

    Recommendation 274 was in line with the government’s commitment to greater openness and transparency across the National Health Service, particularly when things go wrong.

    The Coroners and Justice Act 2009 gives coroners powers to require a person or organisation in England and Wales to provide evidence and to require a witness in England and Wales to give evidence at an inquest. The 2009 Act makes it, “an offence for a person to do anything that is intended to have the effect of (a) distorting or otherwise altering any evidence, document or other things that is given, produced or provided for the purpose of an investigation…. (b) preventing any evidence, document or other thing from being given produced or provided for the purposes of such an investigation or to do anything that the person knows or believes is likely to have that effect.” This offence is limited to actions where there is “intention” to distort or alter evidence, and is punishable by a fine and / or imprisonment. The Ministry of Justice is currently conducting a post-implementation review of the 2013 coroner reforms in the Coroners and Justice Act 2009, which includes the reforms’ provisions on disclosure of information. The call for evidence and survey element of the review finished at the end of 2015, and the Ministry of Justice is now considering the responses received. The Department of Health understands that it hopes to publish a response document in the spring.

    In response to the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Public Inquiry the Government introduced a statutory duty of candour which came into force on 27 November 2014 for NHS Trusts, Foundation Trusts and some special health authorities that provide care and treatment to people that is regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and for all other providers registered with CQC on 1 April 2015. The statutory duty of candour applies to organisations, rather than to individual members of staff. However, it is designed to foster an open culture throughout the organisation, and providers are accountable to CQC for meeting the duty of candour. CQC are able to take enforcement action against the provider, and in certain circumstances its board and senior management, where breaches of the duty of candour have been found. Providers of care will therefore be expected to implement the new duty of candour through staff across their organisations – including educating, training and, if needs be, disciplining their staff appropriately.

    In addition, The NHS Serious Incident Framework published in 2015 provides advice on provision of information regarding serious incidents to coroners, patients and their families. It is available at

    https://www.england.nhs.uk/patientsafety/serious-incident/

    CQC will look at how safe care is for patients as part of the inspection of NHS Trusts.

    “

  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January 2016 to Question 21142, when (a) the provisional data referred to will be finalised and (b) the next set of data will be released.

    Alistair Burt

    My response to Parliamentary Question 21142 included data on attendances at accident and emergency departments covering January to September 2015 with data covering the period April to September 2015 labelled as provisional. However, my officials have advised me that data for the period January to March 2015 is also classed as provisional as the finalised data for this period is yet to be published. Provisional data is subject to change and allows for any revisions to be made throughout the year. The differences between provisional and finalised data are small, with variations of less than 1% on most figures extracted from Hospital Episode Statistics data.

    Finalised data for 2014-15 will be published on January 28 2016. Finalised data for 2015-16 is expected to be published in January 2017, however, there is no approved schedule for final publication of these data as yet.

    The next set of monthly provisional accident and emergency quality indicators data for October 2015 will be available on January 26 2016.

  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Prime Minister’s announcement of extra funding for relationship support of 11 January 2016, how many hours of support will be provided to each couple; and whether there will be a financial cost to each couple for that support.

    Priti Patel

    The Department will be working through the details of what will be provided by the contracted relationship support provision in the next few months.