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25 Nov 2002 : Column 131W—continued
CBRN Incidents
Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements have been made in establishing (a) a national doctrine, (b) national standards and (c) national commonality of equipment to enable ambulance services to respond to a CBRN incident. [82583]
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements have been made in establishing (a) a national doctrine, (b) national standards and (c) national commonality of equipment to enable ambulance services to respond to a (i) chemical, (ii) biological, (iii) radioactive and (iv) nuclear incident. [82160]
Mr. Lammy [holding answer 21 November 2002]: Ambulance services are required to maintain their capability to respond to a range of major incidents, including chemical, biological, radioactive and nuclear incidents. But due to the changes in risk and scale, the Ambulance Service Association has been working in conjunction with other emergency services to produce a national approach based on a common doctrine, standard approach and common procedures. This work is approaching its conclusion and that we can expect recommendations shortly. National procurement arrangements for interim personal protective equipment have already been completed and higher specification equipment and decontamination units are now being delivered, which will ensure that each ambulance service will have access to common equipment.
Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many ambulance personnel in each ambulance trust have been trained in dealing with a CBRN incident. [82581]
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many ambulance personnel have been trained in dealing with a (a) chemical, (b) biological, (c) radioactive and (d) nuclear incident in each ambulance trust. [82159]
Mr. Lammy [holding answer 21 November 2002]: Ambulance services, based on their local risk assessment, were required to train teams of staff in dealing with a chemical, biological, radioactive and nuclear incident. As they take delivery of decontamination units and newer protective equipment, further training programmes are being instigated on a cascade basis. The current number of staff trained is not collected centrally.
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Community Psychiatric Nurses
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS community psychiatric nurses there were in each year since 1995. [83331]
Mr. Hutton: Between September 1995 and September 2001, the number of qualified nurses employed in the community psychiatry area of work increased by over 3,500, or 43 per cent.
| Whole-time equivalents | Headcount | |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 7,970 | 8,560 |
| 1996 | 8,710 | 9,330 |
| 1997 | 9,010 | 9,740 |
| 1998 | 9,460 | 10,230 |
| 1999 | 9,710 | 10,550 |
| 2000 | 10,190 | 11,080 |
| 2001 | 11,040 | 12,220 |
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10
2. Due to rounding totals may not equal the sum of component parts
3. Figures exclude learners and agency staff
4. Figures are for qualified nurses working in community psychiatry. This includes community psychiatry nurses and nurses with other first level qualifications
Source:
Department of Health Non-Medical Workforce Census
Congestion Charging
Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the estimated cost is to his Department of the Central London Road User Charging Scheme for (a) 17 February 2003 to 31 March 2003, and (b) 1 April 2003 to 31 March 2004. [81879]
Mr. Lammy [holding answer 19 November 2002]: Any additional costs to the Department as a result of the congestion charging scheme will be just one element within wider costs which have to be met from budgets for official travelling and other costs.
Deaf Children in Care (Sexual Abuse)
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of deaf children suffered sexual abuse while in local authority care in the last year for which figures are available. [82697]
25 Nov 2002 : Column 133W
Jacqui Smith: The Department does not hold this data centrally
Delayed Discharges
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many operations were cancelled in (a) England and (b) Wales in the last three months; and how many of these were due to delayed discharge. [82494]
Mr. Hutton: In England, data are collected on the number of patients whose operation has been cancelled for non-clinical reasons Xon the day of surgery and at the last minute". The most recent data available for the quarter ending June 2002 shows there were 14,808 operations cancelled at the last minute for non-clinical reasons, of which 10,819 operations were cancelled on the day of surgery.
The data collected on cancelled operations for non-clinical reasons are not broken down into the reasons for cancellation. Therefore, no data can be provided on how many operations are cancelled due to delayed discharge from hospital.
Health matters in Wales are the responsibility of the National Assembly for Wales.
Dementia
Mr. Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what plans he has to improve the training of doctors in the diagnosis and treatment of dementia; [82262]
- (2) if he will make a statement on Government support for people with Alzheimer's Disease; [82263]
(3) what recent representation he has received about the need for earlier diagnosis by GPs of dementia; [82261]
(4) how the National Carers Strategy is meeting the needs of people who care for those with dementia. [82265]
Jacqui Smith: The Government fully recognise the importance of ensuring that the needs of people with dementia and their carers are met. For that reason, the national service framework (NSF) for older people has a standard, a service model and milestones to monitor progress around the health and social needs of older people with mental health problems, including all people with dementia, and requirements around meeting the needs of their carers.
A key element of the NSF requirements is ensuring early diagnosis of dementia. We are aware of concerns over this, and of the research funded by the Alzheimer's Society to assess ways of helping primary care teams with diagnosis and treatment of dementia. The Department's care group workforce team for older people's services is also looking at the training needs of staff working with people with dementia.
Various other strands of work are under way to help with implementation of the NSF. For example, consideration is being given to the inclusion of a clinical guideline on the management of dementia within the programme of work of the National Institute for Clinical Excellence.
25 Nov 2002 : Column 134W
As a result of the national carers strategy, carers of people with dementia have a right to an assessment of both their needs and ability to continue caring. Ring-fenced money totalling £85 million this year and £100 million next year has been provided to allow carers to take short term breaks from their caring responsibilities. In certain circumstances, carers may also receive cash that they can use to purchase the services they need.
Dermatology (West Sussex)
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Action on Dermatology programme capital projects have been awarded to primary care trusts in West Sussex. [83283]
Ms Blears: The former West Sussex Health Authority was allocated £142,000 in action on dermatology funding. Information is not available centrally on how this money was disseminated to the wider health community.
Domiciliary Care
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average number of hours was an individual in (a) England and (b) Wales received domiciliary care in (i) May 1997 and (ii) the last month for which figures are available. [82496]
Jacqui Smith: The number of hours of home care is collected for households, not individuals. The average number of hours of home care received by a household in England was 5.4 hours in September 1997 and 7.6 hours in September 2001. Corresponding data for 2002 are not yet available.
Information on the number of people receiving home care in Wales is a matter for the National Assembly for Wales.
Mr. Burns: : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in (a) England and (b) Wales were receiving domiciliary care in (i) May 1997 and (ii) the last month for which figures are available. [82495]
Jacqui Smith: In 2000–01, some 1.3 million adults in England were helped to live independently at home through the provision of a variety of community-based social services. Corresponding data for 1997–98 is not available.
The number of households receiving home care in England in September 1997 and September 2001 was 479,100 and 381,200 respectively. The number of people in these households is not known.
Information on the number of people receiving home care in Wales is a matter for the National Assembly for Wales.
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