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HEALTH
Physiotherapy
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many physiotherapy posts are currently vacant in (a) England and Wales, (b) the North West and (c) North Cheshire Health Authority; and in each case what percentage of the total number of posts this vacancy level represents; [66831]
- (2) how many paediatric physiotherapy posts are currently unfilled in (a) England and Wales, (b) the North West region and (c) North Cheshire Health Authority. [66829]
Mr. Denham
[holding answer 21 January 1999]: Information on vacancy rates for physiotherapists is not available centrally. For the information that is available on physiotherapy vacancy rates up to March 1997, I refer my hon. Friend to the 1998 annual report of the Review Body for Nursing staff, Midwives, Health Visitors and Professions Allied to Medicine, copies of which are available in the Library.
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Helen Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what in each of the past five years, was the percentage of students completing physiotherapy training who took up employment in the NHS. [66833]
Mr. Denham
[holding answer 21 January 1999]: The information requested is not available centrally. For the information that is available on students completing physiotherapy training, my hon. Friend may wish to contact the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. For the information that is available on physiotherapists who take up employment in the National Health Service, I refer my hon. Friend to the Reports of the Review Body for Nursing Staff, Midwives, Health Visitors and Professions Allied to Medicine, copies of which are available in the Library.
Helen Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the total expenditure on agency physiotherapy staff in (a) England and Wales, (b) the North West region and (c) North Cheshire Health Authority in each of the past five years. [66830]
Mr. Denham:
The information requested is not available in the form requested. The tables contain the total expenditure (1997-98 prices) on agency professions allied to medicine for the years 1993-94 to 1996-97 and agency scientific, therapeutic and technical staff for 1997-98 not employed directly by individual National Health Service trusts and health authorities. Expenditure on agency professions allied to medicine and scientific, therapeutic and technical staff by North Cheshire Health Authority for the years 1993 to 1998 is nil. Questions relating to Wales are a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.
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| Health authority expenditure (£) | NHS trust expenditure (£) | Total expenditure (£) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (a) England | ||||
| 1997-98 | Scientific, therapeutic and technical staff | 859,098 | 68,539,903 | 69,399,001 |
| 1996-97 | Professions allied to medicine | 783,852 | 34,452,623 | 35,236,475 |
| 1997-96 | Professions allied to medicine | 390,478 | 26,367,092 | 26,757,570 |
| 1994-95 | Professions allied to medicine | 2,390,596 | 16,773,898 | 19,164,494 |
| 1993-94 | Professions allied to medicine | 4,487,217 | 9,250,462 | 13,737,679 |
| (b) North West Region | ||||
| 1997-98 | Scientific, therapeutic and technical staff | 736,284 | 4,089,925 | 4,826,209 |
| 1996-97 | Professions allied to medicine | 0 | 2,017,288 | 2,017,288 |
| 1995-96 | Professions allied to medicine | 3,814 | 934,553 | 938,367 |
| 1994-95 | Professions allied to medicine | 0 | 574,537 | 574,537 |
| 1993-94 | Professions allied to medicine | 186,515 | 418,672 | 605,187 |
Source:
Annual financial returns of health authorities
Annual financial returns of NHS trusts
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Accident and Emergency Departments
Mr. Cann: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is his target for investment in the modernisation of accident and emergency departments during 1999. [69586]
Mr. Denham:
I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Wirral, South (Mr. Chapman) on 2 February 1999, Official Report, column 573.
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Ms Southworth:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanisms are in place to assess the effect of geographical variations in access to, and quality of, disablement services on access by disabled people to (a) the New Deal and (b) Welfare to Work. [69584]
Mr. Hutton:
All the New Deal initiatives are subject to full evaluation. As part of each evaluation we will be
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able to identify whether there is a geographical variation in the effectiveness of Welfare to Work for a range of groups including disabled people.
Ms Southworth:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what meetings he has had with colleagues in other departments to discuss the effect of geographical variations in access to, and the quality of, disablement services on access by disabled people to (a) the New Deal and (b) Welfare to Work. [69585]
Mr. Hutton:
My hon. Friends the Members for Barking (Mrs. Hodge) and City of York (Mr. Bayley), the Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of State for Education and Employment and for Social Security and I will be meeting shortly to discuss how local health, employment and social services can work together through the various New Deal initiatives to improve the employment prospects of disabled people. In addition, a cross Departmental group of officials from the Departments of Health, Education and Employment and Social Security meets regularly to ensure effective liaison over the welfare to work agenda.
Mr. Willis:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to express efficiency gains as a percentage of his departmental budget; and if he will make a statement. [69629]
Mr. Denham:
The planned efficiency gains are set out in the Department's Public Service Agreement at paragraph 4, chapter 4 of 'Public Services for the Future: Modernisation, Reform, Accountability' (Cm4181).
Mr. Berry:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how statistics on (a) prostheses, (b) orthoses, (c) wheelchairs and (d) electronic assistive devices are used
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to facilitate (i) clinical governance, (ii) the dissemination of good practice, (iii) performance management and (iv) cost-effectiveness within disablement services; [69665]
Mr. Hutton:
There are no statistics collected on prostheses, orthoses or electronic assistive devices. The only data collected centrally on the number of wheelchairs issued are for electrically-powered indoor/outdoor wheelchairs. The total number of these issued so far to users is:
Data are collected on the number of vouchers issued to users through the wheelchair voucher scheme and the number of these issued so far to users is:
Issues of clinical governance and performance management are managed locally, and dissemination of good practice is coordinated through regional offices of the National Health Service Executive.
Ms Buck:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the (a) grants and (b) other financial support given by his Department to (i) Westminster City Council and (ii) the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, other than through the RSG settlement, in (1) 1997-98, (2) 1998-99 and (3) planned for 1999-2000; and for what purposes the funds were allocated. [70157]
Mr. Hutton:
The information is shown in the tables.
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(2) how many (a) prostheses, (b) orthoses, (c) wheelchairs and (d) electronic assistive devices were supplied by the NHS in each of the last three years. [69664]
1996-97: 714
1997-98: 4,308
1998-99: 2,022.
1997-98: 811
1998-99: 1,550.
| £ | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Description | 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 |
| Capital | |||
| Private Finance Initiative Credits | (7)-- | 4,500,000 | (8)-- |
| Annual Capital Guidelines | 287,000 | 215,000 | 217,000 |
| Supplementary Credit Approvals: AIDS/HIV | 250,000 | 250,000 | (8)-- |
| Supplementary Credit Approvals: Mental Illness | 180,000 | 120,000 | (8)-- |
| Specific and special grants | |||
| AIDS/HIV Support Grant | 800,000 | 770,000 | (8)-- |
| Alcohol and Drug Misusers Grant | 61,744 | 27,421 | (8)-- |
| Training Support Programme | 215,091 | 206,361 | 126,476 |
| Mental Health Grant (previously Mental Illness Specific Grant) | 1,274,835 | 1,192,401 | 796,541 |
| Guardian ad Litem and Reporting Officer Services Grant | 28,784 | (9)-- | (9)-- |
| Community Care Special Transitional Grant | 2,304,652 | 2,170,586 | (9)-- |
| Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children's Grant | 441,179 | (8)-- | (8)-- |
| Persons from Abroad Children's Grant | 2,835,433 | (8)-- | (8)-- |
| Asylum-Seekers' Accommodation Grant | 3,809,388 | (8)-- | (8)-- |
| Promoting Independence: Partnership Grant | (10)-- | (10)-- | 1,755,000 |
| Promoting Independence: Prevention Grant | (10)-- | (10)-- | 146,000 |
| Promoting Independence: Carers' Grant | (10)-- | (10)-- | (8)-- |
| Children's Social Services (Quality Protects) Grant | (10)-- | 32,500 | 775,000 |
(7) Not bid for
(8) Not yet decided
(9) Programme ceases
(10) Programme did not exist
(11) Not yet decided
(12) Programme ceased
(13) Programme did not exist
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