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Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how much donated blood was disposed of by the National Blood Service as the result of false reactions to blood tests in each year since 1997; [193407]
(2) how many people were informed by the National Blood Service in each year since 1997 of a false reaction to a blood test; and if he will make a statement; [193408]
(3) for what reasons the donation of blood which has given a false reaction to a blood test but has proved safe in subsequent tests is not permitted; and why a further test after an interval of several months is required before the person can donate blood. [193409]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The table shows the total number of donated units of blood that were disposed of by the National Blood Service (NBS) as a result of false positive results on blood screening tests.
Since 2000, it has been national policy to inform donors of false reactions in order to take a small blood sample for repeat testing of the donor. This avoids collecting full donations from this group of donors in a situation where the donations will not be used. The table shows from 2000 onwards the number of donors who were informed, which is the same number as the number of units disposed.
The matter of a false reaction on a blood donation which is subsequently determined to be safe is a matter of good manufacturing practice, with which NBS must comply because it produces components which are transfused in humans.
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The interval of several months before the person can donate is a precautionary measure. It allows time to establish that there is not a true infection in the donor. This time is required because of the varying incubation periods of the infections for which screening is undertaken.
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in (a) the NHS and (b) his Department earn a whole-time equivalent salary of £57,485 or more. [195326]
Ms Rosie Winterton: 297 people in the Department of Health were earning a whole-time equivalent salary of £57,845 on 1 March 2004.
An estimated 3 to 4 per cent. of staff were on contracts on national pay scales in the national health service (excluding GPs) with a full time annualised salary of more than £57,485 in August 2003.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of dentists in each county in England undertake NHS work. [197031]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The numbers of general and personal dental service dentists in each county and in each local authority areas not defined as a county England are shown in the following tables.
Information is only available on national health service dentists and therefore the percentage of dentists in each county undertaking NHS work cannot be given. Relatively few dentists practise totally privately.
Some areas do not have county status even though they may lie within county boundaries.
For such areas, the number of general and personal dental service dentists is given by local authority area.
Dentists have been included by either county or local authority on the basis of their practice postcode. They have been counted in each county or local authority in which they practise.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate he has made of the number of people in the Portsmouth area who are unable to access an NHS dentist. [197367]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department does not collect information on the numbers of people who are unable to access a National Health Service dentist. However, the latest information from NHS Direct shows that, in March 2004, there were 296 calls from people in the Portsmouth city area, all of whom were referred to dentists accepting patients within local distance standards. The Department has allocated £1.5 million to the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Strategic Health Authority to improve access, choice and quality in NHS dentistry.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been allocated to each NHS trust in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight to improve access to dentistry in the last five years; and what criteria are used in allocating such funding. [197369]
Ms Rosie Winterton: From 1999 to 2003, the Department funded three schemesInvesting in Dentistry, Dental Care Development Fund and Modernising Dentistry. Their common purpose was to make grants to health authorities (HAs), which were furthest from the Government's targets for improving access to National Health Service dentistry, for extending dental practices or purchasing new equipment to enable them to treat more patients. Responsibility for administering the scheme was delegated to the HAs with advice that they imposed conditions on the use of the funds to benefit NHS patients. Information is not held centrally on which dental practices benefited from this scheme.
In 200405, the Department has allocated a total of £50 million to strategic health authorities (SHAs) to support access in 200405. Of this sum, £1.5 million has been allocated to the Hampshire and Isle of Wight SHA to improve access, choice and quality in NHS dentistry.
The criteria for distribution from the centre to the SHAs was based on weighted capitation reflecting population and deprivation. From then on, it is up to individual SHAs to decide how to distribute these funds at a local level.
In addition to this funding, Fareham and Gosport primary care trust (PCT), Isle of Wight PCT and New Forest PCT are also receiving support from the NHS dentistry support team, which is backed by a fund of £9 million, the break down of which is shown in the table.
PCT | Recurrent | Non-recurrent |
---|---|---|
Fareham and Gosport | 310,000 | 26,000 |
Isle of Wight | 600,000 | |
New Forest | 490,000 | |
The criteria for selecting the most challenged PCTs by the support team are:
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on (i) dental decay
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and (ii) requirement for dental services in each of the NHS trust areas in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight; and if he will make a statement. [197371]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department has not commissioned any research or evaluation on dental decay or requirements for dental services in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, but, as we move towards the delegation of contracting for National Health Service dentistry, primary care trusts are becoming increasingly involved in assessing the oral health needs of their populations.
At a national level, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence issued guidelines in October on recall interval between routine dental examinations. We are taking account of the guideline in preparing for the new contractual arrangements for NHS dentistry to be introduced from October 2005. A significant number of dentists are entering the new arrangements early, through the personal dental schemes.
In addition, dental epidemiological surveys of the dental health of children have been carried out annually since 1986, co-ordinated for the NHS by the British Association for the Study of Community Dentistry. This programme seeks to monitor the dental health of children and contributes to the national monitoring of service provision and targets, while providing data locally to aid in service planning and evaluation of oral health strategies.
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