---

Alzheimer's Disease

Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) men and (b) women in England suffer from Alzheimer's disease. [24693]

Jacqui Smith [holding answer 8 January 2002]: This information is not routinely collected. The 1998 Medical Research Council Cognitive Function and Ageing Study estimated that about 600,000 people in the United Kingdom have dementia. Alzheimer's disease causes up to 60 per cent. of cases of dementia.

5 Feb 2002 : Column 923W

The only available statistical returns are for hospital admissions. The number of admissions in England, by sex, for Alzheimer's disease in 2000–01 is shown in the table.

	Number
Male	1,984
Female	3,538
Sex not known	41
Total	5,563

NHS Direct

Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the average time taken to answer NHS Direct's telephones (a) at weekends, (b) between 6 pm and 11 pm, (c) between 11 pm and 6 am and (d) during daytime office hours in the last 12 months. [24700]

Ms Blears [holding answer 8 January 2002]: It is not currently possible to provide the information on average time taken to answer NHS Direct calls as requested. However, the average time it takes for NHS Direct to answer the telephone is approximately 30 seconds after the confidentiality message finishes.

Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many calls NHS Direct received in each of the last six months. [24699]

Ms Blears [holding answer 8 January 2002]: The information on the number of calls to NHS Direct for each of the last six months is shown in the table.

Month/year	Total calls
2001
June	401,000
July	409,000
August	398,000
September	369,000
October	427,000
November	416,000
December	511,000

Source:

NHS Direct sites

5 Feb 2002 : Column 924W

St. John Ambulance Volunteers

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times in 2001 St. John Ambulance volunteers carried out duties normally the responsibility of London ambulance service personnel. [24308]

Ms Blears [holding answer 8 January 2002]: Figures are not held centrally for the number of times the London ambulance service have called upon the individual services of St. John Ambulance.

Head Injuries

Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans there are to increase support and training for head injury survivors. [25453]

Jacqui Smith [holding answer 9 January 2002]: We are keen to help ensure that all disabled people, including those with head injury, are able to play a full part in society. One important way of doing this is by helping people return to work whenever possible. Currently local authorities are taking the lead on Joint Investment Plans on Welfare to Work for disabled people initiative. The idea of these plans is to provide effective and joined up services for disabled people who want to work, to stay in work, or to move closer to the world of work.

Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans the Government have to compile up-to-date epidemiological data on the extent and severity of traumatic brain injury. [25454]

Jacqui Smith [holding answer 9 January 2002]: There are no plans to extend our data collection. We already collect data on the number, extent and severity of traumatic brain injury, as shown in the table, which has data for the last five years. Around one million people a year receive a head injury in the United Kingdom, and over 100,000 of those attend hospital.

Finished consultant episodes (FCEs) by main diagnosis NHS hospitals, England 1995–96 to 2000–01

S00—S09 Injuries to the head	1995–96	1996–97	1997–98	1998–99	1999–2000	2000–01
S00 Superficial injury of head	9,731	10,829	11,000	10,875	12,293	11,379
S01 Open wound of head	20,180	23,186	23,824	23,668	27,184	25,883
S02 Fracture of skull and facial bones	29,839	31,419	30,265	27,837	30,825	28,318
S03 Dislocation sprain and strain of joints and ligaments of head	317	381	367	410	349	314
S04 Injury of cranial nerves	78	63	94	96	106	68
S05 Injury of eye and orbit	3,655	3,503	3,320	3,255	3,591	3,230
S06 Intracranial injury	23,226	20,036	16,529	11,942	12,790	11,892
S07 Crushing injury of head	30	16	11	19	16	5
S08 Traumatic amputation of part of head	127	116	102	111	123	123
S09 Other and unspecified injuries of head	40,912	42,193	41,102	40,163	43,271	39,175
Total	128,096	131,742	126,615	118,376	130,548	120,387

Note:

A Finished Consultant Episode (FCE) is defined as a period of patient care under one consultant in one health care provider. The figures do not represent the number of patients, as one person may have several episodes within the year. Data for 1995–96 to 1997–98 are adjusted for both coverage and unknown/invalid clinical data. 1998–99 to 2000–01 data are not yet adjusted for shortfalls.

5 Feb 2002 : Column 925W

Hospital Management

Ms Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what criteria will be used to assess the need for franchised management of persistently failing hospitals. [29398]

Mr. Hutton: If a national health service body is not performing one or more of its functions adequately or at all, or there are significant failings in the way the trust is being run, the Secretary of State for Health has the powers, under section 13 of the Health and Social Care Act 2001, to intervene.

In the case of trusts that have recently received a zero star performance rating they are required to provide an action plan, agreed with the Department, to address the particular areas of performance which they need to improve. Franchise arrangements will be considered only if these trusts fail to make progress against their action plan.

GPs

Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to attract back retired general practitioners to work in the medical profession; and if he will make a statement. [29968]

Mr. Hutton: We are committed to increasing general practitioner numbers in line with the NHS Plan target for at least an extra 2,000 by 2004. To deliver this we are, in consultation with the profession and others, exploring and implementing change to make general practice more attractive.

These changes already include increasing the number of training places, recruiting from overseas, providing additional training and support for new GPs; improving GPs' working lives by reducing bureaucracy and introducing family friendly packages; giving better support by providing better information technology, better buildings and different ways of working; developing flexible career options; and offering cash incentives to new GPs or returning GP retainees. These measures are intended to attract new GPs, to retain those now practising, and to encourage the return of those who are qualified but not currently working in general practice.

Primary Care Trusts

Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what criteria he has used in the evaluation of primary care groups in their applications to become primary care trusts; and if he will make a statement. [29969]

Mr. Hutton: Primary care trusts are established after full and open consultation locally. Each application to establish a PCT is assessed against the nationally published criteria for assessment contained in Health Service Circular 1999/167. Applications must demonstrate:

The benefits of what will be achieved


The degree of support for the proposal


The 'fitness' of the proposed organisation to deliver


The impact on other organisations.

5 Feb 2002 : Column 926W

Mobile Phones

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his definition is of other sensitive sites referred to in the Stewart report on "Mobile Phones and Health"; and whether this includes sites directly on top of homes. [31345]

Ms Blears: In May 2000, the Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones (IEGMP), chaired by Sir William Stewart, issued a report on "Mobile Phones and Health". This report included a number of recommendations designed to provide more information to people about base stations in their area. It included a recommendation that there should be an independent random on-going audit of all base stations to ensure that exposure guidelines are not exceeded outside the marked exclusion zones and that the base stations comply with their agreed specifications. The group said that particular attention should be paid initially to the auditing of base stations near to schools and other sensitive sites. The group was particularly concerned about schools, as at open meetings held by the group around the country, concern had been expressed about the potential exposure of children in schools and this was seen as a sensitive issue. The group was not specific about other sensitive sites. There was no specific concern about homes directly underneath base stations as the radio signals are generally directed to the horizon and not downwards.

The IEGMP was also concerned about possible interference caused by the use of mobile phones in hospitals and other sites where the radio frequency radiation could possibly interfere with sensitive equipment. They, therefore, made a recommendation that health authorities/health boards should issue guidance on the use of mobile phones and should ensure that all hospitals comply. This guidance includes the placing of visible warning signs at entrances to buildings to indicate that mobile phones should be switched off. In addition, health care establishments have liaised carefully with mobile phone organisations to ensure that any risk is negligible to patients and staff when considering the location of base stations on their premises.

---