| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
23 Jun 2003 : Column 582W—continued
Pharmacies
Mr. Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many unfilled pharmacy vacancies there are in hospitals in England. [118728]
Mr. Hutton: Information on the number of vacancies lasting three months or more is collected in the National Health Services vacancies survey. The available information for pharmacy staff is shown in the table.
| Three monthvacancy ratepercentage | Three month vacancy number | Staff in post (whole time equivalent) | Staff in post (head count)
| March 2002 | September 2001
| Registered pharmacists(28)
| 6.6 | 282 | 3,751 | 4,266
| Pre-registration pharmacy trainees(28)
| 2.1 | 9 | 599 | 623
| Other qualified pharmacy staff(28)
| 2.7 | 124 | 4,759 | 5,418
| | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
(28) England—Excluding HA staff
Three month vacancy notes:
1. Three month vacancy information is as at 31 March 2002
2. Three month vacancies are vacancies which Trusts are actively trying to fill, which had lasted for three months or more (whole time equivalents).
3. Three month vacancy rates are three month vacancies expressed as a percentage of three month vacancies plus staff in post.
4. Three month vacancy rates for non-medical staff are calculated using staff in post from the Vacancy Survey, March 2002.
5. Percentages are rounded to one decimal place.
Staff in post notes:
1. Staff in post data is from the Non-Medical Workforce Census, September 2001 and the Mini Consultant Census, March 2002.
2. Staff in post data excludes staff employed by Health Authorities, as vacancy information was only collected from Trusts, PCTs and Special Health Authorities.
General Notes:
1. Vacancy and staff in post numbers are rounded to the nearest whole number.
2. Calculating the vacancy rates using the above data may not equal the actual vacancy rates.
3. Due to rounding, totals may not equal the sum of component parts.
Sources:
Department of Health Vacancies Survey, March 2002.
Department of Health Non-Medical Workforce Census, September 2001.
Post-natal Depression
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of mothers of babies he estimates suffer from depression. [120103]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department does not keep central records on the diagnosis of those receiving mental health services, except in cases where an admission to hospital has occurred. However, information on the overall prevalence of mental ill
23 Jun 2003 : Column 583W
health among adults living in private households is available from the Office for National Statistics at www.statistics.gov.uk.
Wheelchairs
Mrs. Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children under five years old have powered wheelchairs provided by the NHS; and if he will make a statement. [120737]
Dr. Ladyman: Information on the number of individuals who currently have electrically powered wheelchairs which have been provided by the National Health Service is not held centrally.
Information is available on the number of electrically powered indoor-outdoor chairs issued each year, but this is not broken down by age.
| England | 1997–98 | 1998–99 | 1999–2000 | 2000–01 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of powered wheelchairs issued | 4,464 | 4,033 | 3,388 | 3,279(29) |
(29) Incomplete figure (one return missing)
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how much has been allocated for the provision of wheelchairs in each of the last five financial years for which figures are available; and how much has been allocated for the current financial year; [120355]
- (2) what requirement is placed on (a) strategic health authorities, (b) hospital trusts and (c) primary care trusts to provide wheelchairs; and if he will make a statement; [120356]
(3) what the maximum waiting period is for the provision of a wheelchair to an NHS patient who requires one. [120357]
Mr. Hutton: Figures on waiting periods for people requiring wheelchairs are not collected centrally.
Figures on funding for wheelchair services are not held centrally. Funding for wheelchair services is part of health authority general allocations. It is for health authorities in partnership with primary care groups/trusts and other local stakeholders to determine how best to use their funds to meet national and local priorities for improving health, tackling health inequalities and modernising services.
Section 29 of the National Health Service Act 1997 (NHSA) places a duty on all health authorities to make arrangements with appropriate practitioners to provide medical services for people in their catchment areas (this became the responsibility of primary care trusts as a result of section 2 of the Health Act 1999).
The National Health Service (General Medical Services) Regulations 1992 Schedule 2, paragraph 43 sets out general practitioners' duties to prescribe items, including wheelchairs for permanent use.
In practice, it is the 151 NHS Wheelchair Services which actually arrange for the provision of wheelchairs in England.
23 Jun 2003 : Column 584W
Primary Care Trusts
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what spending plans Southend Primary Care Trust has made for financial year 2003–04, broken down by types of treatment. [118512]
Dr. Ladyman: The information requested is not published by the Department of Health. However, Southend Primary Care Trust has taken its local delivery plans to a number of key forums to ensure a wide stakeholder involvement. This includes patients, the local Community Health Council and local general practitioners. A detailed paper was presented to Southend PCT Board in May 2003, which outlined their expenditure plans for 2003–04.
Mrs. Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how his Department monitors compliance by PCTs with the requirement that funds are made available for the implementation of NICE guidance not later than three months after issue; and if he will make a statement; [119669]
- (2) what further plans he has to address the local variations in prescribing atypical antipsychotic drugs for the treatment of people with schizophrenia; and if he will make a statement; [119670]
(3) what measures are being taken to increase the number of primary care trusts who are implementing the National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidance on HTA; [119674]
(4) what estimate he has made of the number of people who do not have access to the most modern drugs to treat schizophrenia as set out in the National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidance of June 2002. [119675]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) issued guidance on the use of newer (atypical) antipsychotic drugs for the treatment of schizophrenia in June 2002. It is recommended that atypical antipsychotics should be considered as options for the treatment of schizophrenia. The clinician responsible for prescribing the medication should do so following appropriate assessment of the patient and taking into account the views of the patient (or their advocate if appropriate), and the relative benefits and side effects. The statistics currently available on the use of atypical antipsychotics indicate a continuing rise in the prescribing of these products, but no estimates are available of the number of patients who may not be receiving treatment in accordance with NICE guidance.
National health service bodies are under a statutory obligation to fund treatments recommended in NICE technology appraisals. We expect primary care trusts (PCTs) to meet their statutory obligations, and strategic health authorities to follow up any allegations of non-compliance. We last reminded PCTs of their obligations in guidance published in January 2003.
Prime Care
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many complaints there have been about Prime Care in (a) 2002 and (b) 2003; [121068]
23 Jun 2003 : Column 585W
- (2) what the total value is of NHS contracts with Prime Care (a) in 2002 and (b) projected for 2003. [121070]
Mr. Hutton: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to him on 12 June 2003, Official Report, column 1079W.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many deaths are estimated to have occurred while waiting for an on-call doctor to arrive in (a) 2002 and (b) 2003; and how many of these involve Prime Care. [121069]
Mr. Hutton: Information is not collected or held centrally on deaths before an on-call doctor arrives.
Service Delivery
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how the NHS has performed against its targets for service delivery in each year since 2000. [120907]
Mr. Hutton: National Health Service performance against key service delivery targets is set out annually in the Department of Health report. The 2003 Department Report is due to be published shortly and a copy will be made available in the House of Commons Library. The 2002 Department Report is currently available in the Library or alternatively on the Department's website at: http://www.doh.gov.uk/dohreport/report2002/download.html
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |