| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Nursing and Midwifery Student (Funding)
Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of nursing and midwifery students in the latest year for which figures are available had no access to student loans, university hardship funds and NHS hardship grants as a result of being on diploma courses. [35203]
Mr. Hutton [holding answer 11 February 2002]: Approximately 87 per cent. of national health service- funded students currently studying nursing and midwifery are undertaking the diploma level programme. Whilst these students are not eligible for student loans, university hardship funds or NHS hardship grants, they receive a higher level of basic bursary than those studying at degree level. The financial support available to each student is dependent on the individual's circumstances. Overall, while the nature and source of funding differs, the overall package of support available to the two groups is comparable.
Midwifery and Nursing
Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government plans to take to bring about parity between diploma and degree students of midwifery and nursing. [35204]
Mr. Hutton [holding answer 11 February 2002]: The diploma and degree in nursing and midwifery are courses with different academic attainment that both lead to eligibility to register as a qualified nurse or midwife. We have no plans to change the two different routes of nurse training.
Medical Education
Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government takes to encourage and finance the continuing professional development and education of consultants and GPs. [35205]
12 Feb 2002 : Column 339W
Mr. Hutton [holding answer 11 February 2002]: The General Medical Council places a duty on all doctors to keep their knowledge and skills up to date throughout their working lives. National health service budgets include provision for investment in continuing professional development for all NHS staff groups. For general practitioners this takes the form of a postgraduate education allowance of up to £2,700 which is payable annually to general medical service GPs undertaking accredited training to further their continuing professional development (CPD). A similar allowance is payable to personal medical service GPs through their contractual arrangements.
We are also taking steps to encourage and formalise participation in CPD through the introduction of appraisal systems for NHS doctors. A new system of appraisal for GPs is to be introduced this year. An appraisal system for hospital consultants was introduced from April 2001. Both systems are professionally driven and led. GP appraisal will be organised and funded by primary care trusts but the appraisals themselves will be undertaken by suitably trained GPs. Consultant appraisal is organised and funded by the NHS employer but the appraisals themselves will be undertaken by suitably trained doctors. The objective of appraisal is to support the doctor concerned in identifying his/her personal and professional development needs and providing a personal development plan to address them which will in turn focus the doctor's continuing professional development over the year to come.
An additional £20 million is being invested in 2001–02 to support and encourage the development of all health professionals, including consultants and GPs, with more to come in the next couple of years—a further £30 million has been agreed for CPD activity in 2002–03.
Breast Cancer
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will list those (a) health authorities and (b) hospital trusts which have not achieved the Government target for all breast cancer patients to wait no longer than one month between diagnosis and treatment by December 2001; [34691]
- (2) how many breast cancer patients in each of the last 12 months waited more than one month between diagnosis and treatment, broken down by health authority area; and what the total was in February 1997. [34692]
Yvette Cooper [holding answer 11 February 2002]: The data requested are not available. The target of a maximum wait of one month from diagnosis to first definitive treatment for breast cancer came into effect on 31 December 2001. Central monitoring began on 1 January 2002 and data will be published later in the year.
Dentists
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dentists have opted out of the NHS in each year since 1997. [34790]
Ms Blears [holding answer 11 February 2002]: Available information covers the number of dentists leaving the general dental service (GDS) in England and is shown in the table for the years 1996–97 to 2000–01.
12 Feb 2002 : Column 340W
The number of leavers covers all reasons for leaving the GDS including final retirement from dental work, moves to other parts of the national health service and dentists taking career breaks as well as those who left to practice solely privately. Figures from 1998–99 onwards are inflated by the transfer of some dentists from the GDS to some personal dental service (PDS) pilots. The total number of dentists includes principals on a health authority list, assistants and vocational dental practitioners.
| Year | Principals | Assistants | Vocational trainees | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996–97 | 692 | 64 | 78 | 834 |
| 1997–98 | 738 | 85 | 77 | 900 |
| 1998–99(56) | 761 | 106 | 105 | 972 |
| 1999–2-00(56) | 780 | 157 | 95 | 1,032 |
| 2000–01(56) | 875 | 181 | 136 | 1,192 |
(56) Figures affected by the transfer of some dentists from the GDS to the PDS
Tobacco
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will make a statement on the harm caused to nicotine users of (a) using oral tobacco and (b) smoking cigarettes; [34906]
- (2) what advice he received from (a) the Chief Medical Officer, (b) the Scientific Committee on Tobacco and Health and (c) other public health experts regarding the public health implications of the ban on oral tobacco products agreed in Article 8 of EU Directive 2001/37/EC. [34904]
Yvette Cooper [holding answer 11 February 2002]: Tobacco use is harmful to human health, both in oral forms and when smoked. Smoking tobacco is associated with various cancers, lung disease, cardiovascular disease and peptic ulcers. There are fewer data on which to appraise the full range of health risk from oral tobacco but it is associated with development of cancer in humans, notably mouth cancers. Oral use of tobacco produces blood nicotine levels, which are comparable to those of cigarette smokers.
The Department has not sought advice from the Chief Medical Officer or the Scientific Committee on Tobacco and Health on the public health implications specific to the ban on oral tobacco products agreed in Article 8 of European Union Directive 2001/37/EC. In the United Kingdom in general there is no recent tradition of oral tobacco consumption but there is a tradition of use of oral products among some ethnic minority communities. The Department has a programme of work on tobacco use in ethnic minorities, which will address this issue with appropriate expert advice.
Care Home Beds (Wycombe)
Mr. Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement in the change on the number of care home beds in the Wycombe constituency since 1997. [35342]
12 Feb 2002 : Column 341W
Ms Blears: Information for the Wycombe constituency is not centrally available. The number of residential and nursing care homes and beds in Buckinghamshire is shown in the table.
| Residential care homes | Nursing care homes, hospitals and clinics | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Homes | Places | Homes | Places | |
| 1997(58) | 134 | 2,438 | 55 | 1,735 |
| 1998 | 163 | 3,253 | 57 | 2,054 |
| 1999 | 170 | 3,383 | 55 | 1,966 |
| 2000 | 178 | 3,399 | 57 | 1,896 |
| 2001 | 172 | 3,426 | 60 | 1,951 |
(57) Buckinghamshire as defined prior to local government reorganisation on 1 April 1997. Figures for 1998 onwards are for the redefined Buckinghamshire county council plus Milton Keynes unitary authority.
(58) The number of nursing homes and beds in 1997 refers to the period 1 October 1996 to 31 March 1997.
Source:
Department of Health annual returns
Mental Health
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many episodes of in-patient care were purchased by the NHS in London in the independent mental health sector in the last year for which figures are available. [35090]
Jacqui Smith: [holding answer 11 February 2002]: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 8 January 2002, Official Report, column 663W.
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what work has taken place on child and adolescent mental health services for the Children's National Service Framework; [35086]
- (2) if he will list the meetings scheduled for the External Working Group on child and adolescent mental health services in the Children's National Service Framework; and when its work is expected to be complete; [35084]
(3) pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2002, Official Report, column 674W, on mental health, when the first meeting between his Department and the Department for Education and Skills to develop the mental health module of the Children's National Service Framework is scheduled to take place. [35230]
Jacqui Smith [holding answer 11 February 2002]: The first two meetings of the child and adolescent mental health External Working Group of the Children's National Service Framework have been set for 5 March and 24 April. The initial meeting will be primarily concerned with scoping the programme of work for the group. We envisage there will be at least two further meetings of the group this year. The Department for Education and Skills will be represented at a senior level on the group.
The module on acute health services is scheduled to report to Ministers later this year the others will follow thereafter.
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2002, Official Report, column 750W, on mental health, how much
12 Feb 2002 : Column 342W
capital expenditure has been profiled in respect to the DSPD unit at (a) Rampton and (b) Broadmoor, and, in each case, when it is profiled to be spent. [35231]
Jacqui Smith [holding answer 11 February 2002]: New dangerous and severe personality disorder (DSPD) persons units at Rampton and Broadmoor will deliver 140 places for DSPD persons by 2004. These are complex schemes, involving major innovations both in design, and in the approach to service delivery.
At Rampton the profiled capital spend is £20.7 million, of which £500,000 will be spent by the end of this financial year 2001–02. The remainder will be spent in 2002–03 and 2003–04. The unit is planned to be completed in 2003, and to open in the autumn of 2003.
Work on the unit at Broadmoor is at an earlier stage of development, and work to profile the capital spend is in hand. However, it is on target to open in 2004.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |