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16 Mar 2004 : Column 253W—continued
Self-harm/Suicide (Young People)
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures are being implemented under the National Suicide Prevention Strategy to reduce instances of self-harm in young people. [161081]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The National Institute for Clinical Excellence is currently preparing guidelines for the management of self-harm in accident and emergency departments. This includes the services provided to children and young people. Once published, the National Institute for Mental Health in England (NIMHE) will support local services in establishing procedures and services for people presenting at accident and emergency with self-harm.
A risk assessment training package (STORM) focusing on self-harm is being piloted in two areas and in five prisons.
NIMHE is supporting local mental health services in implementing the 12 points to a safer service—developed from the work of the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide—which includes recommendations for patients who self-harm.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has commissioned into (a) suicide and (b) deliberate self-harm in young people; and if he will make a statement on the findings of the research. [161082]
Ms Rosie Winterton: A national collaborative is being established with Department of Health funding for the monitoring of deliberate self-harm (DSH), including that of young people. Through this monitoring it will be possible to estimate the number of suicides in the year following DSH and thereby inform suicide and deliberate self-harm strategies.
The Department has recently funded a study of coroners' records covering different methods of suicide across the whole age range.
The Department also funds the Oxford Monitoring System for Attempted Suicide. Its aims are to provide comprehensive monitoring of long-term trends in DSH; the identification of information (causes, risk factors and outcome) relevant to service provision for DSH patients; an evaluation of suicide prevention strategies; and specific research projects on DSH.
In addition, mental health promotion pilots targeted at young men are being established in three areas, which, if successfully evaluated, will become part of the National Institute for Mental Health in England's mental health promotion work.
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Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many reported instances of deliberate self-harm there have been in people under 30 years old in each year since 1997, broken down by (a) age and (b) sex. [161084]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the progress of the National Suicide Prevention Strategy in reducing the number of young people who commit suicide. [161085]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The National Suicide Prevention Strategy for England annual report on progress 2003 sets out progress in implementing the strategy, including action taken to reduce suicide in young people. A copy of the report is available in the Library.
Seroxat
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether Seroxat is prescribed to children under 18. [158526]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Paroxetine (Seroxat) is prescribed to patients under the age of 18 although it is not authorised for use in such patients. However, in the United Kingdom a doctor may prescribe outside the terms of a marketing authorisation on his/her own responsibility, if he/she considers that this is in the best interests of the patient and having informed him/herself of the benefits and risks of such an action.
Following advice from the Committee on Safety of Medicines and its expert group on the safety of paroxetine and other Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency published summaries of clinical trial data relating to all SSRIs on 10 December 2003 in order that prescribes might make informed decisions.
Smoking
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the NHS's progress towards a world-leading smoking cessation service. [160917]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The national health service stop smoking services, set up in 1999, are now well established across England and are a world-leading service. They provide expert advice and support, with nicotine replacement therapy and zyban available on prescription, to smokers wanting to quit. The Department of Health's monitoring results show that in the financial year 2002–03 the services helped around 124,100 people successfully quit (based on self report), at four week follow up.
To evaluate the impact and effectiveness of the national health service stop smoking services, the Department of Health commissioned a team led by Glasgow University to carry out a comprehensive study.
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The first results of this evaluation was published in September 2003 as "Bauld L et al. Impact of UK national health service smoking cessation services: variations in outcomes in England. Tobacco Control 2003; 12:296–301." The key finding was that
- "Well-developed, evidence-based NHS services, reflecting good practice, are yielding positive outcomes".
The final results of the studies are due to be published in autumn 2004.
A copy of this research is available in the Library.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Ambulance Services (Lisburn)
Mr. Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the Ambulance Services (Lisburn) average journey time is for ambulances stationed at the Lagan Valley Hospital to respond to emergency calls in the Lisburn City area; and what plans he has to provide additional ambulance cover at the Lagan Valley hospital between the hours of 22.00 and 08.00 on Sunday to Thursday each week. [161519]
Angela Smith: The information is not available in the format requested. However, in the period 1 April 2003 to 29 February 2004, 69 per cent. of 999 calls in the Lisburn City area had a response within eight minutes.
Ninety five percent had a response within 18 minutes. There are currently no plans to provide additional ambulance cover at Lisburn ambulance station, which is situated at Lagan Valley Hospital. Nonetheless, the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service and the Eastern Health and Social Services Board constantly review levels of cover and will redeploy resources as necessary.
Asthma
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will estimate the (a) cost and (b) number of working days lost as a result of asthma in Northern Ireland in the last year for which figures are available. [160612]
Mr. Pearson: Information regarding the cost and number of working days lost as a result of occupational asthma in Northern Ireland is not available. However, it is estimated that the total cost of work-related ill health in Northern Ireland could be as much as £330 million per year and that this accounts for an estimated £365,000 million working days lost each year. It is estimated that over 4,000 people in Northern Ireland are affected by asthma caused or made worse by work and that there are approximately 200 new cases each year.
Birth Statistics
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many births there were in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years; and how many there were in (a) 1994, (b) 1989 and (c) 1984. [160621]
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Mr. Pearson: The following table gives the number of births registered in Northern Ireland in 1984, 1989, 1994 and each year from 1998 to 2002.
| Births Registered | |
|---|---|
| 1984 | 27,693 |
| 1989 | 26,080 |
| 1994 | 24,289 |
| 1998 | 23,861 |
| 1999 | 23,173 |
| 2000 | 21,768 |
| 2001 | 22,251 |
| 2002 | 21,772 |
Blood Donors
Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many registered blood donors there are in Northern Ireland; what the equivalent figures were for each year since 2000; and if he will make a statement on the steps he is taking to increase such figures. [156946]
Angela Smith: In 2003–04 there were 69,837 active donors in Northern Ireland compared with 68,049 active donors in 2002–03.
Due to changes in the interpretation of active donor numbers, comparable data are unavailable for previous years.
The Northern Ireland Blood Transfusion Service has an ongoing promotional campaign, including advertising in newspapers and on radio and buses, to encourage existing donors and recruit new donors. Currently three mobile units operate each day and blood is also collected at the HQ facility. Opening hours at the HQ facility are to be extended to allow further opportunities to donate.
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