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Essex Health Authority
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the cost of implementing the management changes associated with the creation of the Essex health authority. [28498]
Ms Blears: The creation of Essex health authority from 1 April 2002 is part of the national programme of implementing shifting the balance of power encompassing changes to the national health service at national, regional and local level. Taken together these changes will release £100 million of savings from reducing bureaucracy.
NHS Asset Sales
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if the disposal of land and buildings and other assets deemed surplus to requirements by three star NHS trusts in England will require the consent or approval of other bodies. [28673]
Mr. Hutton: When the national health service performance ratings for acute national health service trusts were published in September 2001, a number of earned autonomy freedoms were announced for the top performing hospitals. Three star trusts are able to retain £5 million, instead of the current £1 million, of the receipt from land sales without the need for a business case.
In accordance with the Department's Estatecode these NHS trusts are still required to refer proposed disposals to NHS Estates who will provide an informed client overview of those disposals.
Health Cost Claim Form
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has plans to simplify form HC1, entitled Claim for Help with Health Costs. [28972]
Ms Blears: Form HC1 has been designed to collect the information necessary to calculate a person's entitlement to help with health costs. We have no plans to amend it.
Nurses (Buckinghamshire)
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many nurses are employed in each of the hospitals located in Buckinghamshire health authority; [30057]
31 Jan 2002 : Column 554W
- (2) how many nursing vacancies there are in the Buckinghamshire health authority area; and what the average figure is for each hospital trust. [30038]
Ms Blears: Information on nursing staff in the Buckinghamshire health authority area is currently only available for 2000, this is shown in the table.
| Whole-time equivalents | Headcount | |
|---|---|---|
| All nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff | 3,550 | 5,390 |
| Qualified | 2,680 | 3,830 |
| Unqualified | 870 | 1,560 |
| Aylesbury Vale Community Healthcare NHS Trust | 660 | 1,120 |
| Qualified | 380 | 610 |
| Unqualified | 280 | 510 |
| Buckinghamshire HA | ||
| Qualified | (42)— | (42)— |
| Milton Keynes Community Health NHS Trust | 400 | 520 |
| Qualified | 300 | 360 |
| Unqualified | 110 | 150 |
| Milton Keynes General Hospital NHS Trust | 660 | 1,100 |
| Qualified | 530 | 800 |
| Unqualified | 130 | 300 |
| South Buckinghamshire NHS Trust | 1,140 | 1,720 |
| Qualified | 890 | 1,270 |
| Unqualified | 250 | 450 |
| Stoke Mandeville Hospital NHS Trust | 640 | 880 |
| Qualified | 540 | 720 |
| Unqualified | 100 | 160 |
| Two Shires—Northampton and Bucks Ambulance NHS Trust | ||
| Qualified | 40 | 50 |
(42) Five or less and greater than zero
Notes:
1. Figures exclude learners and agency staff
2. Figures are rounded to the nearest ten
3. Due to rounding totals may not equal the sum of component parts
Source:
Department of Health non-medical work force census
Data at 30 September 2001 will be available shortly.
For the number of vacancies, I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 4 December 2001, Official Report, columns 182–83W.
31 Jan 2002 : Column 555W
Christmas-day Working
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS staff were required to work on Christmas day 2001 as a percentage of the normal staffing levels. [30939]
Mr. Hutton: Information on the number of national health service staff working or required to work on Christmas day is not collected centrally.
The Department's work force censuses collect the number of staff working for the national health service in England, once a year at 30 September 1 .
- 1 The Department of Health General and Personal Medical Service (GPMS) Statistics collected the number of staff working in general and personal medical services as at 1 October between 1997 and 1999. The 2000 census and subsequent collections are as at 30 September.
Pay Beds
Dr. Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will estimate the (a) gross income to the national health service provided by pay beds and (b) income net of the cost to NHS capacity of the provision of pay beds in each of the last five financial years for which figures are available; [30990]
- (2) what recent estimate he has made of the extent to which the fee covers the cost of treatment in NHS hospital pay beds, with special reference to use of (a) NHS salaried staff and (b) other NHS facilities; [30991]
(3) how many pay beds there were in the national health service in each year since 1977; [30992]
(4) what percentage of beds in NHS hospitals are denoted as for private patients, broken down by (a) NHS trust (b) region and (c) for the whole of England. [30993]
Mr. Hutton: The Department does not hold information centrally on the number of pay beds in the national health service. Laing and Buisson, who publish reviews on the independent healthcare sector, estimate that as of mid-June 2001 there were approximately 3,000 pay beds in the NHS, around 1,400 of which were in dedicated private patient units (PPUs). The remaining 1,600 beds were in ordinary NHS wards.
There are no national estimates on the income and related costs of pay beds in the national health service. Each NHS trust is responsible for ensuring that the income received for pay beds covers the direct costs involved plus a contribution towards overheads.
Figures for gross and net income solely for pay beds is not collected centrally. The Department does collect gross income information under the headings of 'non-NHS private patients' and 'non-NHS other'. No information is available on a net basis. 'Non-NHS patients' includes all income received and receivable for patient care services from private patients. 'Non-NHS other' includes a number of sources such as prescription charges in trusts, Road Traffic Act income (1996–97 only), amenity bed charges, income from overseas patients which are not covered by reciprocal agreements and income from the capital hip care Centre (from 1998–99).
Totals of the gross income for these two categories for the last five financial years are shown in the table.
31 Jan 2002 : Column 556W
| Year | Non-NHS patients | Non-NHS other |
|---|---|---|
| 1996–97 | 235,733 | 153,384 |
| 1997–98 | 273,232 | 169,566 |
| 1998–99 | 290,840 | 216,677 |
| 1999–2000 | 304,826 | 224,187 |
| 2000–01 | 316,627 | 265,953 |
Source:
NHS Trust Summarisation Schedules 1996–97 to 2000–01.
Multiple Sclerosis Drugs
Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what recent discussions he has had with the drug companies about the cost of beta interferon; [31195]
- (2) what progress he has made with trials to extend the availability of beta interferon to people with MS; and if he will make a statement. [31194]
Ms Blears: Discussions are continuing with the manufacturers of the four disease modifying drugs for multiple sclerosis. These discussions are dependent upon the final guidance about these drugs from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what discussions his Department has had with the (a) MS Society, (b) manufacturers and (c) neurologists, about options for continuing the availability of beta interferon and glatiramer within the NHS; when he expects those discussions to be concluded; and if he will make a statement concerning the timing of a trial; [13108]
- (2) by what date everyone with MS who is eligible for beta interferon will have received these drugs under the proposed prescription plus monitoring scheme; [29267]
(3) what assessment he has made of how consultant (a) neurologists and (b) specialist nurses in post will cope with implementing the prescription plus monitoring scheme for beta interferon; and whether any further resources will be made available to facilitate the scheme; [29282]
(4) when he plans to issue the first prescriptions for beta interferon under the proposed prescription plus monitoring scheme; and if he will make an announcement on this. [29268]
Ms Blears: Discussions are continuing with the manufacturers of the four disease modifying drugs for multiple sclerosis. These discussions are dependent upon the final guidance about these drugs from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence.
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