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BSE
Mrs. Ray Michie: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what has been the total expenditure to date on the BSE eradication and compensation schemes; and if he will make a statement. [2163]
Mr. Raymond S. Robertson [holding answer 6 November 1996]: The total expenditure to date is £700 million. Most of this expenditure has been on the over-30-month slaughter scheme, the calf processing scheme, the additional EU compensation package--beef special premium scheme and suckler cow premium scheme top-up, beef marketing payment scheme--the beef stocks transfer scheme, the animal feed recall scheme, aid to renderers, emergency aid to the slaughtering sector.
HEALTH
Dementia
Mr. Barry Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will make a statement on the basic training nurses receive in respect of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia; [3272]
- (2) what steps he has taken to improve the training of health and social care professionals in respect of people with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia. [3271]
Mr. Burns: Such training is primarily the responsibility of the relevant professional bodies and of the organisations which employ health and social care professionals.
Students who undertake pre-registration nursing programmes in adult or mental health nursing gain an understanding of the various forms of dementia and the care and treatment of people with dementia, including Alzheimer's disease.
The Department has contributed funding towards the provision of training material on dementia for mental health professionals. We commissioned Manchester university to produce training literature in mental health, including specific guidance on older people with mental health problems. We helped the Alzheimer's Disease Society with the production costs of its recent training pack for general practitioner trainers, "Dementia in the Community: management strategies for general practice".
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The Department also contributed funding to a recent feasibility study led by the British Medical Association into an educational video for GPs on dementia.
Mr. Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people suffering from Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia (a) at present and (b) for the year 2006. [3274]
Mr. Burns:
We estimate that there were around 600,000 people with a diagnosis of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease, in 1994, which will rise to 652,000 in 2006.
Mr. Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the current state of research (a) funded and (b) evaluated by his Department into Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia. [3275]
Mr. Burns:
The Department runs two separate research programmes: the policy research programme and the national health service research and development programme. The latest available information on research being carried out under the policy research programme is contained in "The Centrally Commissioned Research Programme: Commissions in 1994-95", copies of which are in the Library.
The NHS research and development programme consists of a number of national programmes and regional research activity. The mental health programme includes a project examining the development of screening tests for dementia and depression in ethnic elders; it also includes a project which is examining dementia information in order to develop a model to establish the number of people in a given population needing specific dementia services. Information is not available centrally on all the regional research projects being undertaken. The projects on which information is available centrally include a study of the patterns and consequences of semantic memory impairment in Alzheimer's disease; a community-based control study of dementias; a study of neuronal structure in aging and Alzheimer's based dementia; and cognitive decline, dementia and aging in people with Down's syndrome: a study of the risk factors and care needs.
Mr. Barron:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been spent by the national health service information management group in each of the last three years on consultancy fees; to which organisations it has been paid; and for what purposes. [3288]
Mr. Horam:
The spend on consultancy fees from vote 2 of Department of Health budgets by the information management group in the last three years is as follows:
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Mr. Kevin Hughes:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding his Department has made available for research into Tay-Sachs disease. [3061]
Mr. Horam:
Information on research commissioned by the Department of Health is contained in "The Centrally Commissioned Research Programme" and "The Centrally Commissioned Research Programme: Commissions in 1994-95", copies of which are available in the Library.
Mr. Barron:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the impact of the extension of the Prodigy pilot study on (a) inward investment by non-United Kingdom-owned pharmaceutical companies, (b) research and development expenditure by the United Kingdom pharmaceutical industry, (c) export performance by the United Kingdom pharmaceutical industry and (d) the introduction in the United Kingdom of new medicines; and if he will make a statement. [3294]
Mr. Barron:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what consultations there were with patient groups over the drafting of the patient advice leaflets provided in the Prodigy pilot study; and if he will make a statement; [3290]
(3) what steps he has taken to ensure that the prescribing recommendations in the Prodigy pilot study (a) are up-to-date, (b) are fully evaluated and (c) have as their primary purpose the greatest possible improvement in patient health; and if he will make a statement. [3432]
Mr. Malone:
Prodigy is a research project to assess the value and acceptability of decision support for general practitioners. The prescribing recommendations and patient advice leaflets for the pilot were derived from respected sources including the British National Formulary and validated by a multi-professional group.
Formal consultation at this stage would not have been appropriate, although we are in discussion with a number of interested parties about possible enhancements for the next phase of the project. The Department recently held a seminar, chaired by the chief medical officer, to look at which processes could be used to develop the therapeutic guidance and advice leaflets if it is ultimately decided to implement a national decision support system. A large measure of agreement was reached on the basis of a process which would be transparent, open and professional and reflect the latest evidence-based information. The seminar was attended by professional interests, patient groups, NHS management and the pharmaceutical industry.
Mr. Barron:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what has been the total cost to date of the Prodigy pilot study; how this cost is broken down; what estimates he has made of the cost to his Department of phases 2 and 3
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of the study; and what estimate he has made of the cost of extending the project to all United Kingdom general practices. [3293]
Mr. Malone:
The total cost to date is £1,900,000. Costs for phase 2 are currently being negotiated. Any decision on future roll-out will be taken in light of the research findings which will also indicate the likely costs.
Mr. Barron:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the impact on patient care and the results of treatment of implementing the recommendations of the Prodigy pilot study about prescribing; and what further steps he is taking to assess the impact. [3287]
Mr. Malone:
Prodigy is a three-year research and development project the results of which will not be known until late 1997.
Mr. Barron:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times the Ministerial Sub-Committee on Health Strategy has met in the last three years; on how many of these occasions "The Health of the Nation" targets have been discussed; when the last meeting took place; and when the next meeting is scheduled. [3298]
Mr. Horam:
The Ministerial Sub-Committee on Health Strategy, EDH(H), has met seven times in the last three years. EDH(H)'s terms of reference are: to oversee the development, implementation and monitoring of the Government's health strategy, to co-ordinate the Government's policies on United Kingdom-wide issues affecting health, and report as necessary to the Ministerial Committee on Home and Social Affairs. "The Health of the Nation" targets were discussed on all occasions. The last meeting was on 18 June 1996. The next meeting has not yet been scheduled.
These fees were paid for consultancy in support of the information management and technology strategy across a number of projects. Many consultancy firms and individuals were employed during this time and a breakdown by individual firms and projects can be provided only at disproportionate costs.
1996-97: £3 million (estimated)
1995-96: £4.8 million
1994-95: £4.1 million
(2) when the steering group of the NHS executive's patient partnership initiative was consulted about the recommendations on prescribing in the Prodigy pilot study and the contents of the patient advice leaflets; and if he will make a statement; [3295]
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