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4 May 2004 : Column 1471W—continued
Hospital Episode Statistics
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS finished consultant episodes were recorded by hospital episode statistics in England in each year since 1979. [168907]
Mr. Hutton: The Department holds finished consultant episode statistics recorded by hospital episode statistics for financial years back to 1989–90. For years prior to 1989–90, there is no comparable data collected centrally. The information available is shown in the table.
| Financial year | Finished consultant episodes |
|---|---|
| 1989–90 | 10,321,556 |
| 1990–91 | 10,228,485 |
| 1991–92 | 9,919,020 |
| 1992–93 | 10,364,186 |
| 1993–94 | 10,597,979 |
| 1994–95 | 11,373,067 |
| 1995–96 | 11,041,554 |
| 1996–97 | 11,098,998 |
| 1997–98 | 11,601,203 |
| 1998–99 | 12,108,141 |
| 1999–2000 | 12,290,278 |
| 2000–01 | 12,476,470 |
| 2001–02 | 12,338,590 |
| 2002–03 | 12,756,260 |
(32) A FCE is defined as a period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Please note that the figures do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the year. The figures in the table include both in-patient and day cases.
Note:
Figures are grossed for coverage, except for 2001–02 and 2002–03, which are not yet adjusted for shortfalls.
Source:
Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health.
Infection Control Nurses Review
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the review of community infection control nurses announced in 2002. [167411]
Mr. Hutton:
Copies of "Informing the Future—A Review of the Role and Responsibilities of Community Infection Control Nurses and Communicable Disease Control Nurses in England", produced by Thames Valley University, have been placed in the Library.
4 May 2004 : Column 1472W
Integrated Falls Strategy
Mr. Maples: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to facilitate greater use of pacemakers as part of an integrated falls strategy. [169272]
Dr. Ladyman: The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) is currently consulting on the second draft of its clinical practice guideline for the assessment and prevention of falls in older people. The consultation runs to 18 May 2004 and final guidance is due to be published in September 2004. More information can be found on the NICE website at http://www.nice.org.uk/cat.asp?c = 20116. The guideline will include recommendations on the use of pacemakers, where they are relevant to the assessment and prevention of falls in older people.
Intensive Care Beds
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many intensive care beds there were in each Greater London NHS Trust in each year since 1997. [168942]
Mr. Hutton: Available adult intensive care and high dependency provision data has been published since March 1999 and the most recent data available is for January 2004. Copies of the publications are available in the Library. Data from July 2001 to the most recent available is also on the Department's website at http://www.performance.doh.gov.uk/hospitalactivity/index.htm.
Mental Health Provision
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) consultant psychiatrists, (b) mental health nurses and (c) primary care mental health workers (i) were recruited by and (ii) left the NHS in each of the previous five years in each Greater London NHS Trust. [168938]
Mr. Hutton: The information requested is not held centrally.
Musculoskeletal Disease
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many people are suffering from musculoskeletal disease; and if he will make a statement; [166206]
(2) how much money was spent by the NHS on the management and treatment of musculoskeletal disease in the last year for which figures are available; [166207]
(3) what assessment he has made of equality of access to treatment and services for musculoskeletal disease; and if he will make a statement. [166209]
Dr. Ladyman: Three of the most commonly occurring musculoskeletal conditions are osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis. Arthritis Care estimates that between 8 and 10 million people in the United Kingdom suffer from the condition.
Information on how much was spent by the national health service on the management and treatment of musculoskeletal disease specifically is not collected centrally. Primary care trusts (PCTs) receive allocations to cover the costs of all hospital and community health
4 May 2004 : Column 1473W
services to meet the needs of the population they serve. The level of funding made available for the drugs, staffing and other costs of managing and treating musculoskeletal conditions is determined locally. It is for PCTs, in partnership with other local stakeholders, to determine how best to use their funds to provide health services for their populations, including those with musculoskeletal conditions.
Following reviews by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), the Department has made two new classes of drugs, Cox II inhibitors and anti-TNF therapy available to patients with these conditions.
The Department is driving forward a major programme of work to improve equality of access to all NHS treatment and care services. Maximum waiting times have fallen over the past few years and will continue to do so. By the end of 2005, the maximum waiting time for a first out-patient appointment with a consultant will fall to three months and the maximum wait for in-patient treatment will fall to six months. This will help all NHS patients, including those with musculoskeletal conditions.
NHS Budget
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what budget has been made available for 2004–05 to NHS Accident and Emergency departments for (a) art, (b) plants and (c) music; [167701]
(2) what budget is available to ward managers for the management of their wards; [167706]
(3) whether ward managers receive a direct financial allocation for their ward budget. [167707]
Mr. Hutton: Decisions on allocation of budgets are taken at local level by individual trusts.
Patient Information
Mr. Maples: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures are being taken to set aside funds to empower patients via (a) improved information access and (b) further development of the expert patient scheme. [169274]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department's "Improving Patient Experience" programme established the "Informed Patient" project, a three-year programme of work (2003–06) managed by NHS Direct Online. The project will improve the quality, range and accessibility of patient information; thereby empowering people to make informed decisions about their healthcare. Funding for this work amounts to £1,814,000 in 2003–04 and £2,127,000 for 2004–05. Funding for the third year will be agreed in early 2005.
Following the publication of the strategy document in September 2001, "The Expert Patient: A new approach to chronic disease management for the 21st century", the Department has funded and supported a community based pilot, from April 2002 to 2004 for each primary care trust (PCT) to provide training for people in the self management of long term conditions. Nearly all 300 PCTs in England have piloted the "Expert Patients" programme and data at the end of the pilot in April 2004 showed that almost 10,000 people had taken part.
4 May 2004 : Column 1474W
Funding has been allocated by the Department to support the mainstreaming of the programme across the national health service from 2004 to 2007.
Prescriptions
Mr. Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many prescriptions were issued in each year since 1997; and how many of them were dispensed. [168582]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Information is available on prescriptions that are dispensed in the community in England. However there is no information available centrally on prescriptions that are issued but not dispensed.
The table shows the number of prescription items dispensed in the community from 1997. The information does not include prescriptions dispensed in hospitals or private prescriptions.
Further information on prescriptions dispensed in the community is available on the Department's website at http://www.publications.doh.gov.uk/prescriptionstatistics/index.htm.
| Number (million) | |
|---|---|
| 1997 | 500.2 |
| 1998 | 513.2 |
| 1999 | 529.8 |
| 2000 | 551.8 |
| 2001 | 587.0 |
| 2002 | 617.0 |
| 2003 | 649.7 |
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