The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2016-09-14.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have undertaken any follow-up work as a result of the MoD study Unidentified Aerial Phenomena in the UK Air Defence Region published on 15 May 2006; and if so, what was the nature and status of such work, and what units were involved.
Earl Howe
No.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2016-02-01.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps the East Midlands Strategic Clinical Network is taking to diagnose atrial fibrillation and prevent atrial fibrillation-related strokes.
Lord Prior of Brampton
NHS England’s Sustainable Improvement Team, which has taken over the work of NHS Improving Quality, is taking action to promote the use of GRASP-AF (Guidance on Risk Assessment and Stroke Prevention for Atrial Fibrillation) within general practitioner (GP) practices in England. GRASP-AF is an audit tool developed by and trialled in the National Health Service, which greatly simplifies the process of identifying patients with AF who are not receiving the right management to help reduce their risk of stroke. The Sustainable Improvement Team is currently collaborating with partner organisations, including charities, to support the nationwide roll-out of GRASP-AF.
To support this work, an analysis of the costs and benefits of using the anticoagulant drug warfarin to help prevent stroke in people with AF was recently published. A copy of this analysis is attached.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence also published a Quality Standard on AF in July 2015, which sets out what a high quality AF service should look like and will help drive improvement locally. A copy of this Quality Standard is attached.
There is also a wealth of information available on the detection and management of people who have AF. The NHS Atlas of Variation includes such data and similarly Public Health England (working with stakeholders) has produced information for clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to enable them to identify and encourage poorly performing areas to improve their detection and management of people with AF. The Atlas is an online tool and therefore it is not possible to attach a copy.
These resources are available to Strategic Clinical Networks to help them with their work to improve the prevention and diagnosis of AF locally.
AF related stroke prevention has been a significant area of focus for the East Midlands Cardiovascular Strategic Clinical Network in recent years. Actions include:
– providing individual advice to CCGs in the area, supporting CCGs to implement AF training for GPs;
– supporting CCGs to implement GRASP-AF;
– developing a non-valvular AF anticoagulation algorithm which has informed updates to local AF guidelines;
– developing an electronic clinical template for the diagnosis and management of AF; and
– promoting the use of the warfarin patient safety audit tool.
AF is also covered as in the National Cardiovascular Intelligence Network’s masterclass programme aimed at all NHS health professionals within CCGs, local authorities and clinical services with an interest in cardiovascular disease data tools and information.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2016-04-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Commissioners have been appointed to run local authority children’s services since January 2015.
Lord Nash
Commissioners are appointed where Ofsted find persistent or systemic failure by a council to deliver children’s services to an acceptable quality.
Persistent failure is defined as a council being rated inadequate more than once within a five year period. Systemic failure is defined as a council being rated inadequate across the board on all key Ofsted judgements.
Commissioners are appointed to direct the improvement of children’s social care services; the Council’s leadership and management of them; and, increasingly, to review whether these services should be removed from council control in order to secure more rapid and sustainable improvement.
Since January 2015 the Secretary of State has appointed five Children’s Services Commissioners.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2016-09-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much was spent on specialist HIV treatment and care in England for each year from 2010–11 to 2014–15.
Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen
Data provided by NHS England shows the estimated expenditure in relation to HIV treatment and care services from 2010 – 2013/14 which are the latest figures available.
Data for financial years 2011/12 and 2012/13 are from National Health Service programme budgeting estimates. Data for financial year 2013/14 are a combination of programme budgeting estimates and NHS England expenditure data on specialised services. Data between these years are not comparable, as responsibility for the commissioning of some services relating to HIV and AIDS and related public health services transferred from primary care trusts to local authorities on 1 April 2013, and are therefore excluded from NHS figures from this date forward.
2010-11 – £571 million
2011-12 – £642 million
2012-13 – £630 million
2013-14 – £570 million
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2015-11-18.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to raise awareness of Charles Bonnet syndrome.
Lord Prior of Brampton
No assessment has been made of the number of people in the United Kingdom who suffer from Charles Bonnet syndrome.
However, the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) estimate there are more than 100,000 cases of Charles Bonnet Syndrome in the UK.
To raise awareness, the NHS Choices website provides information on Charles Bonnet Syndrome. This can be found at:
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/charles-bonnet-syndrome/Pages/Introduction.aspx.
A copy of this web page is attached.
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2016-02-01.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that best practice on diagnosing atrial fibrillation and preventing atrial fibrillation-related stroke is shared between Strategic Clinical Networks.
Lord Prior of Brampton
NHS England’s Sustainable Improvement Team, which has taken over the work of NHS Improving Quality, is taking action to promote the use of GRASP-AF (Guidance on Risk Assessment and Stroke Prevention for Atrial Fibrillation) within general practitioner (GP) practices in England. GRASP-AF is an audit tool developed by and trialled in the National Health Service, which greatly simplifies the process of identifying patients with AF who are not receiving the right management to help reduce their risk of stroke. The Sustainable Improvement Team is currently collaborating with partner organisations, including charities, to support the nationwide roll-out of GRASP-AF.
To support this work, an analysis of the costs and benefits of using the anticoagulant drug warfarin to help prevent stroke in people with AF was recently published. A copy of this analysis is attached.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence also published a Quality Standard on AF in July 2015, which sets out what a high quality AF service should look like and will help drive improvement locally. A copy of this Quality Standard is attached.
There is also a wealth of information available on the detection and management of people who have AF. The NHS Atlas of Variation includes such data and similarly Public Health England (working with stakeholders) has produced information for clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to enable them to identify and encourage poorly performing areas to improve their detection and management of people with AF. The Atlas is an online tool and therefore it is not possible to attach a copy.
These resources are available to Strategic Clinical Networks to help them with their work to improve the prevention and diagnosis of AF locally.
AF related stroke prevention has been a significant area of focus for the East Midlands Cardiovascular Strategic Clinical Network in recent years. Actions include:
– providing individual advice to CCGs in the area, supporting CCGs to implement AF training for GPs;
– supporting CCGs to implement GRASP-AF;
– developing a non-valvular AF anticoagulation algorithm which has informed updates to local AF guidelines;
– developing an electronic clinical template for the diagnosis and management of AF; and
– promoting the use of the warfarin patient safety audit tool.
AF is also covered as in the National Cardiovascular Intelligence Network’s masterclass programme aimed at all NHS health professionals within CCGs, local authorities and clinical services with an interest in cardiovascular disease data tools and information.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2016-04-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken to consult family members and children in the London Borough of Lambeth about their experience of children’s services in the Borough.
Lord Nash
As part of Ofsted’s inspection of children’s social care services in Lambeth (reported on 12 May 2015), Ofsted met with children, young people, parents, carers, care leavers and Lambeth’s Children in Care Council, who provided direct evidence about their experiences of Lambeth’s children’s services.
Ofsted inspectors also talk to young people as part of bi-annual visits to children’s homes; and take children’s and parents’ views as part of an annual survey of all children’s homes and fostering agencies. These surveys inform Ofsted’s lines of enquiry for subsequent inspections and decisions about the timing of inspections.
The independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, led by the Hon. Dame Lowell Goddard DNZM, is taking evidence from those affected by child sexual abuse in Lambeth.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2015-11-18.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the number of people in the UK who suffer from Charles Bonnet syndrome.
Lord Prior of Brampton
No assessment has been made of the number of people in the United Kingdom who suffer from Charles Bonnet syndrome.
However, the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) estimate there are more than 100,000 cases of Charles Bonnet Syndrome in the UK.
To raise awareness, the NHS Choices website provides information on Charles Bonnet Syndrome. This can be found at:
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/charles-bonnet-syndrome/Pages/Introduction.aspx.
A copy of this web page is attached.
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2016-02-01.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action NHS Improving Quality is taking to increase the number of general practitioner practices using the GRASP-AF tool.
Lord Prior of Brampton
NHS England’s Sustainable Improvement Team, which has taken over the work of NHS Improving Quality, is taking action to promote the use of GRASP-AF (Guidance on Risk Assessment and Stroke Prevention for Atrial Fibrillation) within general practitioner (GP) practices in England. GRASP-AF is an audit tool developed by and trialled in the National Health Service, which greatly simplifies the process of identifying patients with AF who are not receiving the right management to help reduce their risk of stroke. The Sustainable Improvement Team is currently collaborating with partner organisations, including charities, to support the nationwide roll-out of GRASP-AF.
To support this work, an analysis of the costs and benefits of using the anticoagulant drug warfarin to help prevent stroke in people with AF was recently published. A copy of this analysis is attached.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence also published a Quality Standard on AF in July 2015, which sets out what a high quality AF service should look like and will help drive improvement locally. A copy of this Quality Standard is attached.
There is also a wealth of information available on the detection and management of people who have AF. The NHS Atlas of Variation includes such data and similarly Public Health England (working with stakeholders) has produced information for clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to enable them to identify and encourage poorly performing areas to improve their detection and management of people with AF. The Atlas is an online tool and therefore it is not possible to attach a copy.
These resources are available to Strategic Clinical Networks to help them with their work to improve the prevention and diagnosis of AF locally.
AF related stroke prevention has been a significant area of focus for the East Midlands Cardiovascular Strategic Clinical Network in recent years. Actions include:
– providing individual advice to CCGs in the area, supporting CCGs to implement AF training for GPs;
– supporting CCGs to implement GRASP-AF;
– developing a non-valvular AF anticoagulation algorithm which has informed updates to local AF guidelines;
– developing an electronic clinical template for the diagnosis and management of AF; and
– promoting the use of the warfarin patient safety audit tool.
AF is also covered as in the National Cardiovascular Intelligence Network’s masterclass programme aimed at all NHS health professionals within CCGs, local authorities and clinical services with an interest in cardiovascular disease data tools and information.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2016-06-06.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the National Institute for Health Research expects project HTA-14/141/01 on screening strategies for atrial fibrillation to be published.
Lord Prior of Brampton
The final report from this project is expected to be published in spring 2017 at the earliest.