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NHS Census

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many responses to the NHS census he received from people living in the Buckingham constituency. [24860]

Ms Blears: There has been no national health service census. The acute trust patient survey is currently scheduled to take place between January and March 2002. The survey will be part of a programme that the Government are putting in place throughout England. Hospital trusts will carry out a specially designed patient survey programme to seek views on the patient experience.

Improving the experience of the individual patient is central to the NHS Plan. By finding out more, in this systematic manner, we will increase our knowledge of what patients need and expect from the NHS and how well the service responds to their needs and expectations.

Pharmacies

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many community pharmacies in the Buckingham constituency (a) closed and (b) opened in each year since 1997. [24855]

Ms Blears: The information requested is shown in the table.

Number of community pharmacies in the Buckinghamshire health authority area that opened and/or closed 1997–98 to 2000–01

YearOpenedClosed
1997–9800
1998–9910
1999–200010
2000–0122

Source:

PHS1 return


Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the latest percentage reduction of fees for community pharmacists for dispensing NHS prescriptions. [24708]

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Ms Blears [holding answer 8 January 2002]: The fees paid to community pharmacy contractors vary according to the item prescribed. The large majority of prescriptions attract a basic dispensing fee. From July 1999 to October 2001 that fee was 97.5p per prescription dispensed. In November 2001 it was changed to 87.4p. This represents a reduction of approximately 10.4 per cent.

The basic dispensing fee is one of a number of fees and allowances by which the global sum for community pharmacies is distributed between pharmacy contractors. The global sum is the amount to be paid to contractors overall in the year in question. The global sum for 2001–02 for England and Wales is £806.6 million, an increase of 3.7 per cent. over 2000–01.

Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the future of pharmacy within the national health service. [25534]

Ms Blears: Our programme for the future of pharmacy in the national health service in England was set out in "Pharmacy in the Future—Implementing the NHS Plan" published in September 2000, a copy of which is in the Library.

Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was allocated to pharmacists for the dispensing of prescriptions; how many prescriptions were dispensed; and what was the unit cost allowed for each prescription in each year from 1992 to 2001. [25536]

Ms Blears: Each year, a figure (known as the global sum) is set for the remuneration to be paid to pharmacies overall in England and Wales for the national health service pharmaceutical services they provide.

The total remuneration to be paid in any given year is distributed through a system of fees and allowances, some of which relate directly to the number (and type) of prescriptions dispensed, some of which do not.

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For the years 1991–92 to 2000–01 (the latest year for which complete information is available), the table shows the global sum, the number of prescription items dispensed and the global sum expressed as an amount per prescription item.

YearGlobal sum (£ million)Prescription items dispensed (million)Global sum expressed as an amount per prescription item dispensed (£)
1991–92601.4412.81.46
1992–93631.1429.41.47
1993–94640.6447.31.43
1994–95655.3462.21.42
1995–96671.7474.71.41
1996–97692.7487.91.42
1997–98709.3505.81.40
1998–99730.6518.31.41
1999–2000755.1535.71.41
2000–01777.8531.81.38

Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to replace the global sum approach to the payment of pharmacists for dispensing NHS prescriptions. [25537]

Ms Blears: We have no current plans to replace the present global sum system.

Waiting Lists

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients in the Buckinghamshire health authority area waited more than (a) three months, (b) six months, (c) nine months, (d) 12 months, (e) 15 months, (f) 18 months and (g) 24 months for (i) heart operations, (ii) cancer treatment and (iii) hip replacements in each year since 1997. [24850]

Ms Blears: The information requested is in the table.

Number of Buckinghamshire HA residents admitted from a waiting list where the primary operation was a heart operation or hip replacement, or where treatment was for a primary diagnosis of cancer, by time waited

Time from referral for treatment to admission
Data yearOperation/conditionUp to 3 monthsMore than 3 monthsMore than 6 monthsMore than 9 months
1997–98Diagnosis of Cancer (ICD10 C00 to D48)5,962668310198
1998–99Diagnosis of Cancer (ICD10 C00 to D48)5,994835452268
1999–2000Diagnosis of Cancer (ICD10 C00 to D48)6,377793337181
2000–01Diagnosis of Cancer (ICD10 C00 to D48)5,595708281151
1997–98Heart operations (OPCS4 K01 to K71)6511929447
1998–99Heart operations (OPCS4 K01 to K71)86735414157
1999–2000Heart operations (OPCS4 K01 to K71)88832810336
2000–01Heart operations (OPCS4 K01 to K71)83153617493
1997–98Hip replacement (OPCS4 W37 to W39)137276194108
1998–99Hip replacement (OPCS4 W37 to W39)130331221137
1999–2000Hip replacement (OPCS4 W37 to W39)163314210139
2000–01Hip replacement (OPCS4 W37 to W39)100361257161

Time from referral for treatment to admission
Data yearOperation/conditionMore than 12 monthsMore than 15 months(28)More than 18 months(28)More than 24 months(28)
1997–98Diagnosis of Cancer (ICD10 C00 to D48)11032105
1998–99Diagnosis of Cancer (ICD10 C00 to D48)14258248
1999–2000Diagnosis of Cancer (ICD10 C00 to D48)8137136
2000–01Diagnosis of Cancer (ICD10 C00 to D48)77311912
1997–98Heart operations (OPCS4 K01 to K71)231010
1998–99Heart operations (OPCS4 K01 to K71)28721
1999–2000Heart operations (OPCS4 K01 to K71)14721
2000–01Heart operations (OPCS4 K01 to K71)361961
1997–98Hip replacement (OPCS4 W37 to W39)572891
1998–99Hip replacement (OPCS4 W37 to W39)8941132
1999–2000Hip replacement (OPCS4 W37 to W39)7743173
2000–01Hip replacement (OPCS4 W37 to W39)87582310

(28) The time spent waiting for admission is calculated for HES purposes as being the period elapsed from the initial decision to admit until the date that the patient is actually admitted. This takes no account of any periods when the patient may have been unavailable for admission, or may have been suspended from the waiting list for medical reasons. It is for this reason that this analysis apparently shows patients waiting over 15 months. The waiting time figures published by the Department of Health take these situations into account.

Source:

Hospital Episode Statistics (HES)


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Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list NHS trusts by length of average waiting time (a) to see an orthopaedic specialist and (b) for a non-emergency orthopaedic operation. [25449]

Mr. Hutton: The information requested has been placed in the Library.

The in-patient average waiting time is calculated as the median time waited so far for patients who were on the trauma and orthopaedics in-patient waiting list at end September 2001, that is it looks at patients who are still waiting for treatment.

For out-patients, the total number of patients still waiting for a first out-patient appointment is not collected. As a result, the average is calculated using data for patients who have already been seen for their first out-patient appointment. Hence the average is calculated as the median waiting time of patients seen during Quarter 2 2001–02 for a first out-patient appointment in trauma and orthopaedics specialty following general practitioner referral.

The in-patient and out-patient averages are approximations only, particularly for trusts who see very few patients. It is difficult to accurately calculate the average.

Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list average accident and emergency waiting times by NHS trust for (a) triage and (b) definitive treatment in the last 12 months for which figures are available. [25450]

Ms Blears: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Mr. George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the NHS trusts in England where more than 10 per cent. of patients are suspended from the waiting list for an in-patient operation. [25491]

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Mr. Hutton: Trusts with a suspension rate of more than 10 per cent. are shown in the table.

In-patient waiting list data, England, position at quarter end September 2001

NHS Trusts with a suspension rate of over 10 per cent.Suspension rate (percentage)
East Cheshire NHS Trust10.0
Winchester and Eastleigh Healthcare NHS Trust10.0
Eastbourne and County Healthcare NHS Trust10.0
Royal Devon and Exeter Healthcare NHS Trust10.0
West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust10.1
Wirral Hospital NHS Trust10.2
Good Hope Hospital NHS Trust10.3
Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals NHS Trust10.3
Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Trust10.4
Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust10.5
Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust10.5
Rotherham General Hospitals NHS Trust10.6
North Dorset PCT10.7
Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Trust10.8
Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre NHS Trust11.1
Gloucestershire Royal NHS Trust11.2
Greenwich Healthcare NHS Trust11.3
Hastings and Rother NHS Trust11.4
South West Dorset PCT11.4
Harrogate Health Care NHS Trust11.6
Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Trust11.9
Epsom and St. Helier NHS Trust13.0
North West Anglia Healthcare NHS Trust13.1
Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Trust13.4
Hillingdon Hospital NHS Trust13.4
Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust13.9
Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Trust15.1
Blackburn, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Health Care NHS Trust16.0
Scarborough and North East Yorkshire Healthcare NHS Trust16.1
West Dorset General Hospitals NHS Trust16.2
Burnley Healthcare NHS Trust16.3
Blackpool, Wyre and Fylde Community Health Services NHS Trust17.6
Mental Health Services of Salford NHS Trust21.8
South Staffordshire Healthcare NHS Trust26.0
Walsall Hospitals NHS Trust31.6

Source:

Department of Health forms KH07 and KH07A


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