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Market Testing
Mr. Chris Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the NHS services which have been market-tested. [18781]
Mr. Horam: A list of services market tested by one or more national health service trusts is as shown. It is based on information supplied to the NHS executive's market testing database.
- Hotel and non-clinical support (60 per cent. in the last year): Accommodation, Car Parks, Catering, Courier, Creche, Domestic, Environmental Health Management, Facilities Management, Gardening, General Patient Services, Hotel Services, Laundry/Linen, Pest Control, Portering, Security, Supplies, Switchboard/Reception, Transport, Waste Disposal, Interpreter.
- Admin, information and financial (18 per cent. in the last year): Advertising and Recruitment, Agency Staffing, Audit, Banking, Clerical and Secretarial, Computer, Consultants, Financial , Human Resources, Insurance, Legal, Management Services, Micro-filming.
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- Clinical and Clinical support (5 per cent. in the last year): Anaesthetics, Bio-Engineering, Chiropody, Clinical Coding, Continuing Care for the Elderly, Central Sterile Supply Department, Hospital sterilizing and Disinfecting Unit Dental, Clinical Genetics, Haematology, Infection Control, In-Vitro Fertilisation Services, Lithotripsy, Medical Physics, Mobility Provisions, Medical Photography, Nuclear Medicine, Ophthalmology, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Occupational Health, Orthotics, Occupational Therapy, Oxygen Therapy Units, Prosthetics, Pathology, Pharmacy, Physiotherapy, Patient Appliances, Radiology, Speech Therapy, Termination of Pregnancy, Perfusionists, Mobile Cardiac Catheterisation.
- Building and Engineering (4 per cent. in the last year): Building and Engineering, Design Electrical, Energy Management, Estates Management, Fire Systems, Flooring, Repairs and maintenance, Gas Supply, Glazing, Lighting, Painting, Water Services.
- Building and equipment/Systems Maintenance (16 per cent. in the last year): Building, Building and Engineering, Estates, Equipment/Systems.
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- Training (1 per cent. in the last year)--Education, Fire, Staff.
- Notes:
- 1. There is no standard definition of services or list of services within the NHS and those listed above relate to units' interpretation.
- 2. Service headings such as "Hotel Services" and "Facilities Management" include a wide and varying range of individual services e.g. catering, portering, security car parking. Again there is no set pattern of which services make up hotel services, and so on; the information relates to individual provider units' interpretation.
Children's Hospices
Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children were cared for in each of the last three years in children's hospices in the United Kingdom. [18785]
Mr. Horam: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Casualty Nurses
Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many vacancies there are in nursing posts in casualty units in the United Kingdom. [18787]
Mr. Horam: The information requested is not collected by the United Kingdom Health Departments.
Measurement of vacancy rates is a matter for local employers. Information relating to nursing vacancies generally is recorded by the Office of Manpower and Economics and is available in the annual report of the Review Body for Nursing staff, Midwives, Health Visitors and Professions Allied to Medicine. Copies of the review body's report are placed in the Library each year.
Patients (Deaths)
Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases have been reported in each health authority in each of the last five years of patients dying after hospital admission but before being found a bed. [18878]
Mr. Horam: The information requested is not available centrally.
Private Health Care
Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS patients were referred to private health care by NHS doctors in 1995-96. [18792]
Mr. Horam: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Departmental Web Site
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when his Department established its Internet site; what representations he has received and what data he has collated on the use and utility of the site; and what steps he is taking to increase the amount of information available via the site. [19147]
Mr. Horam:
The Department of Health Internet site was established in June 1995. Statistics received from the Central Computer and Telecommunications Agency on the use of the site show that weekly page accesses to the
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Department's site have increased from just under 2,000 in June 1995 to over 10,000 in February 1997. The Department of Health's home page is consistently among the top 20 most used pages on the CCTA's open government site. Other pages, such as the hospital league tables, press releases and monthly publications update, are visited frequently. Users of the Department's web site are encouraged to provide feedback via a form on the site. All suggestions for improvement are considered and many have been implemented.
The Department continues to increase the amount of information, and now provides the full text of key communications such as White and Green Papers, press releases and consultative documents, as well as listings of new departmental publications. Later this year, access to departmental circulars is planned and enhanced provision of statistical publications. The Department also encourages staff to consider electronic media, including the Internet, in deciding where to publish departmental communications.
Mr. Thurnham:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS eye examinations took place in 1995-96. [19096]
Mr. Malone:
In 1995-96, family health services authorities in England paid for 6,511,680 national health service sight tests.
Mr. Gordon Prentice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 5 February, Official Report, column 643, how many of the dentists struck off for breaches of professional conduct were found guilty of fraud. [19306]
Mr. Malone:
These figures are not held centrally. This is a matter for the General Dental Council.
Mr. Simon Hughes:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many mortuaries (a) in NHS trusts and (b) elsewhere had insufficient accommodation to meet demand over the Christmas period. [18705]
Mr. Horam:
The information requested is not available centrally.
Mr. Cox:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many general practitioner practices there are in the London borough of Wandsworth. [19491]
Mr. Malone:
The available information is that there were 131 general practitioner practices in Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth family health services authority at 29 March 1996.
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Mr. Simon Hughes:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many local authorities are applying the same capital asset rules to means testing for domiciliary care and for residential care. [19419]
Mr. Burns:
The information requested is not available centrally.
Mr. Simon Hughes:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have been provided with electrically powered indoor wheelchairs by health authorities in England in each of the last three years.[19374]
Mr. Burns:
We do not collect separate figures for indoor-powered wheelchairs. However, the respective figure for all powered wheelchairs are:
Mr. Hughes:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have been provided with electrically powered indoor-outdoor wheelchairs by health authorities in England in each of the last three years. [19375]
Mr. Burns:
No separate information was collected before 1996-97 about the number of electrically powered indoor-outdoor wheelchairs issued by the national health service wheelchair services. From 1996-97, additional funding for the provision of electrically powered indoor-outdoor wheelchairs has been made available to health authorities as part of the wheelchair initiative announced by my predecessor, my hon. Friend the Member for Battersea (Mr. Bowis), on 26 February 1996. By 6 February 1997, a total of 718 electrically powered indoor-outdoor wheelchairs had been ordered and were in the process of being issued.
Mr. Hughes:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what expenditure has been incurred by health authorities for the purchase of electrically powered (a) indoor and (b) indoor-outdoor wheelchairs in each of the last three years. [19376]
Mr. Burns:
The information requested about expenditure on electrically powered indoor wheelchairs is not collected centrally.
Source:
General Medical Service Census
(practice--includes GP partnerships and practices)
1993-94: 8,569
1994-95: 9,441
1995-96: 10,000
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