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Clinical Data
Mr. Levitt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what income his Department (a) has received and (b) plans to receive from the sale of anonymised clinical information. [52262]
Ms Blears: The Department does not receive income from the sale of anonymised clinical data. Where data or other information is made available there may be a charge to cover administrative costs.
Eastbourne and Hastings Hospital Trusts
Mr. Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how much the newly merged Eastbourne and Hastings hospital trusts will pay in additional national insurance contributions in the year 2002; [52226]
- (2) how much he estimates the merged Eastbourne and Hastings hospital trusts will pay in additional national insurance contributions in 2003. [52561]
Ms Blears: The increases in national insurance, announced by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 17 April, will come into effect in April 2003. The East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust will have a gross annual pay bill of approximately £100 million, one per cent. of which would be £750,000 for April to December 2003 or £1 million for 2003–04.
Exact figures are not available as individual NHS staff members' pay and deductions are not collected centrally.
Mixed Wards
Mr. Hurst: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS patients were treated in hospital in mixed wards in each year from 1995 to 2001; and if he will make a statement. [52588]
Ms Blears: This information is not collected centrally.
Hospital Waiting Times
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were waiting more than six months to see a consultant for the first consultation in Lancashire in each year since 1997. [53108]
Jacqui Smith: Three health authorities, East, North West and South Lancashire, were responsible for commissioning health care on behalf of the majority of
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the population of Lancashire. The following data are an aggregate of those three organisations. On 1 April 2002, health authorities in Cumbria and Lancashire merged to form Cumbria and Lancashire health authority.
The total number of patients, following a general practitioner referral, waiting over six months (26 weeks) for a first out-patient consultant appointment, is set out in the table:
| Number of patients | |
|---|---|
| December 1997 | 918 |
| December 1998 | 2,716 |
| December 1999 | 3,176 |
| December 2000 | 2,016 |
| December 2001 | 1,021 |
Reconfiguration Panel
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on how many occasions the independent reconfiguration panel has met. [53228]
Ms Blears: None. The Independent Reconfiguration Panel, which will offer authoritative advice to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on referred proposals for NHS service change, is expected to start work in autumn 2002.
Mental Health
Mr. Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the availability of the latest generation of medicines to those who suffer mental illness. [53011]
Jacqui Smith: There has been a consistent increase in the numbers of prescriptions for atypical antipsychotic drugs over the past five years. In 1997 atypical antipsychotic prescription items dispensed in the community in England accounted for 257,000 or 6.2 per cent. of the total of 4,157,000 prescription items for all antipsychotics. In 2001 the figures were 1,842,000 or 39 per cent. out of 4,718,000.
Endometriosis
Mrs. Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will make a decision on the application by the SHE Trust for DOH Section 64 funding of a comparative survey of endometriosis. [53447]
Yvette Cooper: Notification of the decision on this application was posted to the SHE Trust on 11 April 2002. The SHE Trust were not successful in their application.
Learning Disabilities
Jane Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to encourage the involvement of the (a) independent and (b) charitable sectors in the provision of care for adults with learning disabilities. [53602]
Jacqui Smith: Our policy for improving services for people with learning disabilities is set out in the White Paper "Valuing People: A New Strategy for Learning Disability for the 21 Century" published in March 2001. It is based on the four principles of rights, independence,
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choice and inclusion. We recognise that effective partnerships are key to the delivery of our policy. We work closely with all the key interests including the charitable and independent sector to provide new opportunities for people with learning disabilities to lead full and active lives.
"Valuing People" required local councils to establish Learning Disability Partnership Boards by 31 October 2001. Partnership Boards are required to ensure that local independent providers and the voluntary sector are fully engaged in their work. The "Valuing People" support team is working with Partnership Boards to help build strong partnerships locally.
Representatives of voluntary organisations were actively involved in developing the White Paper and we continue to work with them in its implementation through their membership of the Learning Disability Task Force.
We also provide funding from the Implementation Support Fund announced in "Valuing People" and from the discretionary programme of section 64 grants (approximately £1.3 million in 2002–03) from the Department to voluntary organisations to further our objective of achieving social inclusion for people with learning disabilities.
Sellafield
Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what dates (a) ministers and (b) officials in his Department held meetings with the Irish Government to discuss the British Nuclear Fuels plant at Sellafield between 1 January and 5 October 2001; where each meeting took place; which Ministers were involved in each meeting; and which Irish Government Departments were involved in each meeting. [53382]
Yvette Cooper: For details of the two officials' meetings since 1 January 2001, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 10 April 2002, Official Report, column 442W.
Lung Cancer
Mr. Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been spent on lung cancer treatment in each year since 1997. [53594]
Yvette Cooper: The Department does not collect figures on the cost of NHS services in a way that enables an accurate figure to be calculated for the cost of a particular disease.
Mr. Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of cases of lung cancer in the last five years can be attributed to smoking. [53595]
Yvette Cooper: These data are not routinely collected. The latest estimate of the proportion of deaths from lung cancer was made by the Health Education Authority who estimated in their 1998 report, "The UK Smoking Epidemic: Deaths in 1995", that in 1995 84 per cent. of all deaths from lung cancer (90 per cent. men, 73 per cent. women) in the United Kingdom were caused by smoking.
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Care Homes
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many nursing home residents previously funded under preserved rights have moved from their existing care home as a result of their reassessment; [53769]
- (2) how many nursing home residents previously assisted under preserved rights qualify for the direct payments scheme. [53763]
Jacqui Smith: Information on the outcomes of care assessments of those people whose care was previously funded under preserved rights is not available.
Direct payments cannot be used to purchase long term residential care. We expect that the majority of people who had preserved rights will continue to receive their existing care packages. However, for those that have been assessed as not needing residential care, direct payments will be available as an alternative.
Oxfordshire SSA
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations his Department have made to other Departments on the SSA in relation to Oxfordshire. [54155]
Jacqui Smith: I have made no such representations about the personal social service standard spending assessment formulae as they relate specifically to Oxfordshire.
Comprehensive Spending Review
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations his Department has made to other Departments on funding for social services spending by counties in preparation for the Comprehensive Spending Review. [54156]
Jacqui Smith: No specific representation has been made in respect of counties over and above other local authority groups. However there is regular dialogue with representatives from other government departments, and local authorities, throughout the spending review process so that the views of all local authorities, including counties, can be taken into account.
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