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19 Apr 2004 : Column 211W—continued
NHS Staff (Foreign Nationals)
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nationals of sub-Saharan African countries are employed by the NHS (a) directly and (b) through private agencies. [164420]
Mr. Hutton: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Health care professionals who work in the United Kingdom have to be registered with the relevant body. East body produces a statistical breakdown of their register.
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NHS Staff Numbers
Mr. Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the net change in the number of (a) general practitioners, as defined in the NHS Plan (Cm 4818), (b) nurses, (c) consultants and (d) midwives was for each year since 1997. [160658]
Mr. Hutton: The net change in the number of general practitioners (GPs) (excluding GP retainers and GP registrars) nurses, consultants and midwives for each year since 1997 is shown in the table.
Between 2002 and 2003 there was the largest increase recorded in the number of nurses, GPs and consultants—bringing the total workforce in the national health service to its highest level yet.
| Change | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 1998–99 | 1999–2000 | 2000–01 | 2001–02 | 2002–03 | |
| Consultants | 850 | 997 | 1,080 | 1,381 | 1,288 | 1,680 |
| NHS Plan GPs(80) | 205 | 216 | 126 | 209 | 400 | 1,156 |
| Nurses(81) | 4,601 | 6,180 | 6,495 | 14,429 | 17,139 | 18,839 |
| Midwives | 456 | -42 | -227 | 503 | 174 | 692 |
(79) UPEs include GMS unrestricted principals, PMS contracted GPs and PMS salaried GPs.
(80) NHS Plan GPs includes GMS unrestricted principals, PMS contracted GPs, PMS salaried GPs, restricted principals, assistants, salaried doctors, PMS other and flexible career schemes.
(81) Practice nurse headcount figures are estimated for 1998 and 1999.
Note:
All data as at 30 September 1997–2002 and 30 June 2003 except GP and practice nurse data 1997–99.
Source:
Department of Health General and Personal Medical Services Statistics
Department of Health Medical and Dental Workforce Census
Department of Health Non-Medical Workforce Census
Nurses (Recruitment)
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with which countries other than the Philippines, Spain, India and Indonesia his Department is holding discussions to develop bilateral agreements on international nurse recruitment. [164289]
Mr. Hutton: We have no plans to enter further bilateral agreements on International Recruitment.
Officials from the Department recently met with representatives from the Chinese Embassy to discuss issues of mutual interest and the scope for co-operation without the need for formal agreements.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses have (a) applied for posts and (b) been recruited through the bilateral agreement with Indonesia. [164290]
Mr. Hutton: We do not hold the information centrally as to how many nurses applied for posts through the Memorandum of Understanding with Indonesia. Sixty seven nurses were interviewed and 19 were offered employment.
Four Indonesian nurses have been recruited into the National Health Service through the bilateral agreement.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) nurses and midwives and (b) medical consultants have been recruited through bilateral agreements, broken down by country. [164291]
Mr. Hutton: The Department signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Philippine Government last year. To date the National Health Service has recruited 186 nurses through the agreement.
The Department has a bilateral agreement with the Ministry of Health in Spain. To date the NHS has recruited 892 nurses/midwives and 18 medical consultants as a result of this agreement.
The Department has an agreement with the Ministry of Health in India. To date the NHS has recruited 431 nurses/midwives and 136 medical consultants as a result of this agreement.
The Department signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Indonesian Government in 2002. To date the NHS has recruited four nurses through the agreement.
We have recent signed a Memorandum of Understanding with South Africa to offer South African and English healthcare professionals the chance to go on time-limited placements to the other country.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses recruited through bilateral agreements are working in the NHS. [164292]
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Mr. Hutton: 1,513 nurses currently working in the national health service have been recruited through bilateral agreements.
431 nurses have been recruited from India, four from Indonesia, 186 from the Philippines and 892 from Spain.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department plans to monitor the number of nurses not trained in the UK working in the NHS. [164293]
Mr. Hutton: The Nursing and Midwifery Council holds information on the number of nurses and midwives from overseas entering the register each year. This information can be found at www.nmc-uk.org.
Operations
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many operations were cancelled but rescheduled within 24 hours, in the NHS in (a) England, (b) each region and (c) each strategic health authority in each year since 1996. [156298]
Mr. Hutton: Quarterly data are collected on the number of operations cancelled by the hospital for non-clinical reasons 'at the last minute' (that is on the day patients are due to arrive, or after arrival in hospital, or on the day of their operation).
Cancelled operations data at England level and by National Health Service trust and Strategic Health Authority level are available in the Library and on the Department's website at http://performance.doh.gov. uk/hospitality
Data on the number of operations postponed by hospitals for periods of less than 24 hours are not collected centrally by the Department.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which operations are being purchased from the private sector. [164693]
Mr. Hutton: During recent years the national health service has purchased a range of operations from the private sector under the 'Concordat' arrangement. These have largely been less complex procedures, mainly in ophthalmology, general surgery and orthopaedics. Information is not held centrally on which operations have been commissioned under the Concordat this year, but is available for 2002–03. An analysis has been placed in the Library.
To ensure that waiting time targets are met, patient choice increased and value for money improved, the NHS will be making much greater, but more structured use of the independent sector from next year. This will be done under the aegis of the independent treatment centre programme. The procedures purchased will be diagnostic and less complex surgical procedures (such as cataract treatment, hernia repairs, primary hip and knee replacement, arthroscopies, endoscopies), mainly in general surgery, ophthalmology and orthopaedics.
When fully operational, we expect the independent sector treatment centre programme to treat 250,000 patients per annum across a range of simple and day care procedures.
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In addition to this main programme, the Department is also currently negotiating a supplementary procurement (announced in July 2003) of an extra 125,000 operations for the NHS over the next five years, principally for additional orthopaedic operations. Two services are already working: a treatment centre at Daventry (cataracts) and the mobile cataract treatment service provided by Netcare.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the price paid was for each class of operation purchased from the private sector; and what the equivalent NHS cost of those operations is. [164822]
Mr. Hutton: Information relating to the number of operations purchased from the private sector is not available.
Details of the finished consultant episode (FCE) activity that the national health service sub-contracted to, or directly commissioned from non-NHS providers during the financial year 2002–03, can be found in Appendix SRC5 of the Payment by Results: Core Tools 2004 publication, available on the Department's website at http://www.dh.gov.uk/PolicyAndGuidance/OrganisationPolicy/FinanceAndPlanning/NHSReferenceCosts/f s/en.
This activity includes both operative and non-operative procedures and treatments, for elective and emergency admissions to hospital. Comparable details of the cost of such activity incurred by NHS trusts can be found in Appendix SRC1 of the publication.
The information is also available on the CD, "Payment by Results: Core Tools 2004". The CD contains unit cost information for each NHS provider in 2002–03 for designated procedures, diagnoses and treatments.
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