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13 Jul 2004 : Column 1100W—continued
NHS Continuing Care Criteria (Challenges)
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether individuals challenging NHS continuing care criteria can get help from the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service (a) when considering requesting a case review, (b) on preparation of papers for review panel, (c) after being turned down by review panel and instigating the complaints process and (d) at the time of the complaint panel hearing. [182710]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Independent Complaints Advocacy Service (ICAS) supports patients and their carers with grievances against health services which fall under the jurisdiction of the Health Ombudsman. People are able to seek support for all stages of the review and complaints procedures that apply to individuals wishing to challenge national health service continuing care criteria.
NHS Managers
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many managers were in post in the NHS in (a) 1979 and (b) 1997. [182408]
Mr. Hutton: Information on the number of administrative managers employed in the national health service consistent with that currently collected in the Department of Health non-medical workforce census is only available from 1995. The table shows the number of administrative managers employed in the NHS in 1995 and 1997.
| 1995 | 1997 | |
|---|---|---|
| Whole-time equivalent | 20,049 | 21,434 |
| Headcount | 20,842 | 22,173 |
Source:
Department of Health non-medical workforce census
NHS Performance Criteria
Mr. Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what main criteria he uses to judge the performance of the NHS in England. [183391]
Mr. Hutton:
The independent Healthcare Commission is responsible for developing the indicators for use in the national health service performance ratings. The Healthcare Commission will shortly publish results for 2003–04.
13 Jul 2004 : Column 1101W
NHS Posts
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are taken to ascertain whether Staff and Associate Specialist doctors are invited to apply for NHS posts which go to overseas consultants recruited to work in the UK. [183208]
Mr. Hutton [holding answer 12 July 2004]: The appointment procedure for consultants working in the national health service is set out in the National Health Service (Appointment of Consultants) Regulations 1996 and also the Good Practice Guidance 1996. These require an open and competitive process that should ensure consistent procedures are observed and that all candidates have an equal opportunity when applying and being interviewed for a consultant post.
The only consultant posts which are exclusively available for international candidates, which is done after attempts have been made to fill them in the United Kingdom, are posts advertised under the NHS international fellowships scheme, which aims to recruit eminent consultants from abroad for two year placements in hard-to-fill specialities.
In order to be eligible to apply for consultant posts, doctors must be on the specialist register held by the General Medical Council. If doctors in the staff and associate specialist grades are on the specialist register, they are therefore eligible to apply for consultant posts. Most staff and associate specialist grade doctors are not on the specialist register and are therefore not eligible to apply for such posts.
However, two initiatives are currently being taken forward that will increase the opportunities for these doctors to progress to the specialist register. These are the establishment of the postgraduate medical education training board and the proposals for reform set out in the consultation document, "Choice and Opportunity".
NHS Professionals
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what change in temporary staffing costs he expects for individual NHS trusts which sign up to NHS Professionals; [182655]
(2) on what basis the budget for NHS Professionals for 2004–05 and 2005–06 was agreed; [182658]
(3) what representations he has received from NHS trusts raising concerns about working with NHS Professionals; [182659]
(4) what targets have been set by his Department for NHS trusts to use NHS Professionals; and what progress has been made towards meeting those targets; [182660]
(5) whether it is his policy that NHS trusts should work with NHS Professionals on a mandatory basis; and if he will make a statement; [182661]
(6) what representations he has received from NHS trusts who lost bank staff to private agencies when the bank was transferred to NHS Professionals; and if he will make a statement. [182663]
13 Jul 2004 : Column 1102W
Mr. Hutton: In April 2004, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State established the NHS Professionals special health authority to provide, in partnership with national health service bodies, a national service managing the supply of temporary staff for the NHS in England.
While NHS bodies are not required to use NHS Professionals' services, they have been encouraged by the Department to engage with the special health authority to understand the benefits it can offer for the cost effective management of temporary staffing. It is hoped and anticipated, therefore, that the number of NHS bodies using NHS Professionals will steadily expand.
NHS Professionals is a not-for-profit organisation that brings value to local health economies through two routes; firstly, by working with trusts to help reduce demand for temporary staff and secondly, through commission rates for the supply of temporary staff.
Rates charged by NHS Professionals currently stand at an average of 7.5 per cent. This is at least 13 per cent., less than the average cost of employing staff through a commercial agency operating within agency framework agreements. Trusts should therefore save money by using the NHS Professionals service. The majority of trusts which have implemented the NHS Professionals service report a reduction in their use of temporary staffing by private agencies. I am not aware of any representations from NHS trusts with concerns about working with the special health authority.
The Department has provided financial support of £26.6 million in 2004–05 on the basis of a rigorous review of NHS Professionals' business plan, recognising that NHS Professionals expects to grow the business to a point where it is self funding in the near future. Further information on NHS Professionals' objectives and targets are contained within the business plan, copies of which are available in the Library.
NHS Security
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 24 June 2004, Official Report, column 1554W, on NHS security, when he expects statistics to become available on the number of security incidents in the NHS since 2002. [182427]
Mr. Hutton: The national health service security management service is currently developing systems and processes to support security related incident reporting in other areas.
Statistics on physical assaults taking place in the NHS will be available from the 2004–05 financial year.
NHS Staffing
Colin Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) doctors and (b) nurses were working within the (i) East Leeds, (ii) North East Leeds and (iii) South Leeds Primary Care Trust between September 2001 and September 2003. [183071]
Miss Melanie Johnson
[holding answer 12 July 2004]: The information is set out in the table.
13 Jul 2004 : Column 1103W
| East Leeds PCT | Leeds North East PCT | South Leeds PCT | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Doctors(25) | Practice nurses | Doctors(25) | Practice nurses | Doctors(25) | Practice nurses | |
| 2001 | 102 | 57 | 113 | 58 | 89 | 47 |
| 2002 | 94 | 59 | 112 | 58 | 85 | 47 |
| 2003 | 106 | 57 | 121 | 62 | 100 | 49 |
(24) UPEs include general medical service unrestricted principals, personal medical service (PMS) contracted general practitioners and PMS salaried GPs.
(25) Doctors = General practitioners.
Source:
Department of Health.
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