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Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Flello on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Care Quality Commission report, British Pregnancy Advisory Service, BPAS-Richmond, Quality Report, published in November 2015, whether his Department plans to issue guidance to abortion clinics on consultation on disposal arrangement following terminations.

Jane Ellison

The termination of pregnancies is a regulated activity. All providers of regulated activities must be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and must meet all of the relevant Regulations under the Health and Social Care Act 2008, including meeting the fundamental standards of quality and safety, which includes independent sector termination of pregnancy providers and managers. The CQC is responsible for monitoring and, where appropriate, inspecting providers in relation to their ongoing compliance with meeting those requirements. Independent sector providers are also required to comply with the Department’s Required Standard Operating Procedures which the CQC inspect against.

The CQC has made a public commitment to undertake inspection of all independent providers of termination of pregnancy services using their new inspection approach and will continue to respond to risk as appropriate and take regulatory action as required.

On the issue of whether the Department plans to issue guidance to abortion clinics on consultation on disposal arrangements following termination, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 11 April 2016 to Question 32357.

We have no plans to issue guidance to abortion clinics on the administration of drugs. The administration of drugs is managed through the CQC’s fundamental standards and through inspection visits.

“

01/01/2023
Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which medicines have been reclassified from (a) prescription only medicine to pharmacy medicine status, (b) pharmacy medicine to general sales list medicine status and (c) prescription only medicine to general sales list medicine status in each of the last 25 years; for each of those medicines so reclassified what condition that medicine was designed to treat; and if he will make a statement.

George Freeman

The Government is committed to the continued reclassification of medicines from prescription only to pharmacy classification and from pharmacy to general sales list classification when it is safe to do so and there is a clear benefit to public health. This is an important part of empowering patients to manage their own care. The Government’s medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, is at the forefront of moves to reclassify medicines to non-prescription and is recognised as a leader in Europe in this regard.

Over the years reclassification has been facilitated by improving the regulatory environment for manufacturers to achieve successful reclassification of their products. Amendments to legislation were introduced in 2002 to reduce the legislative burden for reclassification; new guidance was published in 2012 to streamline the process; and in 2015 a United Kingdom platform was set up to maximise stakeholder engagement with the aim of encouraging further reclassification of medicines.

Patient safety remains the prime consideration in any decision to make a medicine available without prescription.

We are unable to calculate the total difference in cost to the public purse following these medicine reclassifications.

The attached tables contain the information for each of the last 25 years on medicines reclassified from prescription only medicine (POM) to Pharmacy (P) medicine and P medicine to general sales list (GSL) medicine. There are no examples of medicines which have been reclassified from POM to GSL. Where relevant, brand names have been included in brackets.

The lists represent the first reclassification either from POM to P or P to GSL of the product and further extensions such as wider indications, additional pack sizes or higher strengths have not been included.

Not all products listed are currently available, for various reasons, including both commercial and regulatory.

01/01/2023
Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, for each medicine reclassified from (a) prescription only medicine to pharmacy medicine status, (b) pharmacy medicine to general sales list medicine status and (c) prescription only medicine to general sales list medicine status in the last 25 years, what the cost to the public purse was of prescribing that medicine in the three years (i) prior to and (ii) following its reclassification.

George Freeman

The Government is committed to the continued reclassification of medicines from prescription only to pharmacy classification and from pharmacy to general sales list classification when it is safe to do so and there is a clear benefit to public health. This is an important part of empowering patients to manage their own care. The Government’s medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, is at the forefront of moves to reclassify medicines to non-prescription and is recognised as a leader in Europe in this regard.

Over the years reclassification has been facilitated by improving the regulatory environment for manufacturers to achieve successful reclassification of their products. Amendments to legislation were introduced in 2002 to reduce the legislative burden for reclassification; new guidance was published in 2012 to streamline the process; and in 2015 a United Kingdom platform was set up to maximise stakeholder engagement with the aim of encouraging further reclassification of medicines.

Patient safety remains the prime consideration in any decision to make a medicine available without prescription.

We are unable to calculate the total difference in cost to the public purse following these medicine reclassifications.

The attached tables contain the information for each of the last 25 years on medicines reclassified from prescription only medicine (POM) to Pharmacy (P) medicine and P medicine to general sales list (GSL) medicine. There are no examples of medicines which have been reclassified from POM to GSL. Where relevant, brand names have been included in brackets.

The lists represent the first reclassification either from POM to P or P to GSL of the product and further extensions such as wider indications, additional pack sizes or higher strengths have not been included.

Not all products listed are currently available, for various reasons, including both commercial and regulatory.

01/01/2023
Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make it his policy to adopt a target encouraging the reclassification of medicines from (a) prescription only medicine to pharmacy medicine status, (b) pharmacy medicine to general sales list medicine status and (c) prescription only medicine to general sales list medicine status; and if he will make a statement.

George Freeman

The Government is committed to the continued reclassification of medicines from prescription only to pharmacy classification and from pharmacy to general sales list classification when it is safe to do so and there is a clear benefit to public health. This is an important part of empowering patients to manage their own care. The Government’s medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, is at the forefront of moves to reclassify medicines to non-prescription and is recognised as a leader in Europe in this regard.

Over the years reclassification has been facilitated by improving the regulatory environment for manufacturers to achieve successful reclassification of their products. Amendments to legislation were introduced in 2002 to reduce the legislative burden for reclassification; new guidance was published in 2012 to streamline the process; and in 2015 a United Kingdom platform was set up to maximise stakeholder engagement with the aim of encouraging further reclassification of medicines.

Patient safety remains the prime consideration in any decision to make a medicine available without prescription.

We are unable to calculate the total difference in cost to the public purse following these medicine reclassifications.

The attached tables contain the information for each of the last 25 years on medicines reclassified from prescription only medicine (POM) to Pharmacy (P) medicine and P medicine to general sales list (GSL) medicine. There are no examples of medicines which have been reclassified from POM to GSL. Where relevant, brand names have been included in brackets.

The lists represent the first reclassification either from POM to P or P to GSL of the product and further extensions such as wider indications, additional pack sizes or higher strengths have not been included.

Not all products listed are currently available, for various reasons, including both commercial and regulatory.

01/01/2023
Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure the improved performance of the North East Ambulance NHS Trust in meeting its response time targets.

Jane Ellison

We expect all National Health Service ambulance trusts, including the North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, to take action to ensure they meet the response time targets, and that commissioners oversee and support this process.

Ambulance services are facing unprecedented demand, delivering over 2,800 more emergency journeys every day compared to 2010 and still continue to respond to the majority of life-threatening cases in under eight minutes.

The Department continues to work closely with NHS England and NHS Improvement to monitor and support performance across all ambulance trusts in 2016-17. In the longer term, NHS England’s Urgent and Emergency Care Review will aim to tackle the root causes of the increasing demand on urgent and emergency care services.

01/01/2023
Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department takes to assess the risk of re-offending of offenders with learning disabilities before they are moved from in-patient care to care in the community.

Andrew Selous

When considering whether to discharge offenders detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 from hospital, the Secretary of State or the First-Tier Tribunal (Mental Health) must decide whether the detention criteria in the Act continue to be met. These are whether the person is suffering from a mental disorder of a nature or degree that warrants detention in hospital for treatment; or it is necessary for the health and safety of the patient or for the protection of others that he or she should receive such treatment; or the appropriate medical treatment is available. Decisions are based on advice provided by clinicians. The risk of re-offending by all patients, including those with learning disabilities, may inform their treatment programmes in hospital – for example, tackling drug addiction or reducing violence. The Secretary of State or the Tribunal will also take such risks into account for the purposes of determining the conditions for discharge into the community. Any learning disabilities may also be reflected in the level of care and support that offenders may be offered once they are in the community.

01/01/2023
Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Flello on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that abortion clinics transfer women to hospital at the earliest stage necessary in the case of serious incidents.

Jane Ellison

The termination of pregnancies is a regulated activity. All providers of regulated activities must be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and must meet all of the relevant Regulations under the Health and Social Care Act 2008, including meeting the fundamental standards of quality and safety, which includes independent sector termination of pregnancy providers and managers. The CQC is responsible for monitoring and, where appropriate, inspecting providers in relation to their ongoing compliance with meeting those requirements. Independent sector providers are also required to comply with the Department’s Required Standard Operating Procedures which the CQC inspect against.

The CQC has made a public commitment to undertake inspection of all independent providers of termination of pregnancy services using their new inspection approach and will continue to respond to risk as appropriate and take regulatory action as required.

On the issue of whether the Department plans to issue guidance to abortion clinics on consultation on disposal arrangements following termination, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 11 April 2016 to Question 32357.

We have no plans to issue guidance to abortion clinics on the administration of drugs. The administration of drugs is managed through the CQC’s fundamental standards and through inspection visits.

“

01/01/2023
Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department has made an assessment of the number of NHS organisations that have official terms and conditions that set payment terms longer than 30 days.

George Freeman

The Department has developed standard National Health Service terms and conditions for use by NHS bodies procuring goods and services from commercial suppliers. The documents were first published in August 2013.

The Department has details of all activity on the gov.uk website which shows extensive use and downloads of the documents and has also invited regular feedback and online surveys that demonstrate the extensive use of the suite of documents.

In June 2015, the Department and the Cabinet Office Mystery Shopper scheme carried out spot checks with a number of trusts to find out the level of take up of the NHS terms and conditions. The results showed 90% of the trusts contacted confirmed they were using (or intended to use) the NHS terms and conditions.

The suite of documents has been endorsed by the Association of British Healthcare Industries (ABHI), the industry association for the medical technology sector, and the Health Care Supply Association, the representative and network organisation for NHS buyers. Both organisations inform the Department of any activity they are aware of that NHS bodies or suppliers are deviating from the stated terms and conditions. There have only limited examples to date.

The Department of Health has been made aware of a couple of examples of where NHS bodies were extending their payment terms beyond 30 days. The examples came both via the Cabinet Office mystery shopper scheme and ABHI. To support their members ABHI undertook more extensive research but has found these are isolated cases and the practice is not widespread.

The Department understands the concern and together with NHS Provider Regulators are working very closely with NHS providers to ensure that they have sufficient cash to support the safe delivery of their essential services. Although the NHS financial position is tight, the Department has not endorsed, and do not support, formal extensions of credit terms, particularly with Small and Medium size Enterprises, beyond the 30 days in statute.

The Department will also ask NHS Improvement to communicate with all NHS providers through its official monthly bulletin to raise awareness of the Better Practice Payment Code.

01/01/2023
Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure NHS staff in England are not harassed by protestors outside hospitals.

Ben Gummer

There have been no representations from National Health Service staff who feel they are being harassed outside NHS buildings by protesters.

Although protesters are democratically entitled to make their views known on abortion and other issues and can do so outside NHS hospitals and other NHS buildings, we would condemn any harassment of NHS staff, patients and others. We would expect NHS trusts, as responsible for providing a safe environment for all using their facilities, to work with the Police and other agencies as appropriate to ensure they have adequate arrangements in place to prevent harassment of staff and patients. If staff are subject to criminal activity such as physical assaults, these should be reported so that employers can take appropriate action.

Currently, NHS trusts have access to Security Incident Reporting Systems which helps NHS Protect measure the nature and scale of security incidents across the NHS, not just those involving physical assaults on staff but also those involving non-physical abuse and theft of/damage to NHS assets.

01/01/2023
Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure patients accessing NHS abortions in England are not harassed by protestors outside NHS hospitals.

Ben Gummer

There have been no representations from National Health Service staff who feel they are being harassed outside NHS buildings by protesters.

Although protesters are democratically entitled to make their views known on abortion and other issues and can do so outside NHS hospitals and other NHS buildings, we would condemn any harassment of NHS staff, patients and others. We would expect NHS trusts, as responsible for providing a safe environment for all using their facilities, to work with the Police and other agencies as appropriate to ensure they have adequate arrangements in place to prevent harassment of staff and patients. If staff are subject to criminal activity such as physical assaults, these should be reported so that employers can take appropriate action.

Currently, NHS trusts have access to Security Incident Reporting Systems which helps NHS Protect measure the nature and scale of security incidents across the NHS, not just those involving physical assaults on staff but also those involving non-physical abuse and theft of/damage to NHS assets.

01/01/2023