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HEALTH

Chiropody

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of access to chiropody services for senior citizens. [209932]

Dr. Ladyman: No assessment has been carried out centrally. There are now 3,809 chiropodists working in the national health service, a 15.9 per cent. increase on 1997. It is for local primary care trusts to decide on priority for access to chiropody.

Down's Syndrome

Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will undertake a review of current research on treatment for Down's Syndrome. [207596]

Dr. Ladyman: There are no plans for the Department to undertake a review of current research on treatment for Down's Syndrome.

Fairer Charging Guidance

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to assess the impact that the fairer charging guidance has had on (a) people with disabilities and (b) older people whose income is just above the guaranteed income level of income support plus 25 per cent.; and if he will make a statement. [209232]

Dr. Ladyman: Following the guidance should mean that a person whose income is just above the minimum level of income support plus 25 per cent. pays only a small amount in charges. We plan in due course to assess the impact of guidance on "Fairer Charging Policies for Home Care".

Food Supplements Directive

Mr. Tredinnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if the Government will use the UK's Presidency of the European Union to renegotiate the Food Supplements Directive. [209168]

 
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Miss Melanie Johnson: It would not be appropriate for discussion on the food supplements directive to be considered as council business during this period as the directive was adopted in July 2002 and applies from 1 August 2005 and the European Commission, at a meeting with the Health Food Manufacturer's Association and the Food Standards Agency on October 2004, stated that it had not received representations from other member states regarding re-opening discussions on the directive.

Homelessness

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the availability of detoxification services for homeless people. [206595]

Miss Melanie Johnson: There has been no formal assessment of the availability of drug or alcohol detoxification services for homeless people.

We are committed to improving strategic planning and commissioning of alcohol services under the alcohol harm reduction strategy and the public health White Paper to improve treatment services. An audit of treatment is being undertaken together with work on models of care for alcohol treatment.

The National Treatment Agency has undertaken a work programme to increase capacity within inpatient detoxification sector for drug misusers. This extra capacity will benefit all drug misusers, including those who are homeless.

Hospitals

John Cryer: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what development projects are proposed for St. George's Hospital, Hornchurch within the next three years; and whether a capital programme has been agreed. [208552]

Dr. Ladyman: Plans are proposed for a new primary care resource centre at the site of the St. George's Hospital, Hornchurch. This will be developed through Barking and Havering LIFT (Holdings) Limited, who will raise the necessary capital.

Informal consultation is under way and, subject to the outline business case being approved by the North East London Strategic Health Authority, a formal consultation will be held later this year.

The primary care trust has a capital programme agreed for 2004–05 and 2005–06 but any capital programme relating to the future of St. George's Hospital is subject to approval of the outline business case.

Mr. Wilkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what percentage of the land designated for the Paddington Basin Health Campus is in the ownership of his Department; when he expects it all to be available for the project; and what proportion will be (a) bought and (b) leased by his Department for this purpose; [209322]
 
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(2) what his estimate is of the total final cost to his Department of the Paddington Health Campus, including VAT and the allowance for inflation; [209353]

(3) what his latest estimate is of the number of beds which will be available to hospital in-patients at the Paddington Basin Health Campus when it becomes operational. [209354]

Dr. Ladyman: The outline business case for the Paddington Health Campus project is currently being considered by the Department and envisages that as well as land already in national health service ownership, additional land is acquired from Paddington Development Corporation Ltd. and Westminster city council.

The land earmarked for the expansion of academic facilities for Imperial College is owned by St. Mary's NHS Trust and amounts to 0.25 hectares. None of the rest of the land required for the Paddington Health Campus is owned by the Department. The outline business case proposes the freehold acquisition of one hectare from Westminster city council and 1.3 hectares on a long lease, of at least 125 years, from Paddington Development Corporation Ltd.

The total costs of construction of the Paddington Health Campus is currently assessed as £789 million at current prices which rises to £1,109 million allowing for value added tax and inflation.

The total number of beds to be built in the Paddington Health Campus is 923.

Mr. Wilkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his estimate is of the effect upon the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Hospital Trust's financial recovery plan of the capital and revenue contributions requested of these hospitals by his Department towards the cost of the Paddington Basin Health Campus. [209355]

Dr. Ladyman: The Trust debated an internal recovery plan at its December board meeting, the papers associated with which are a matter of public record.

The Department has not required that any capital or revenue contributions be made by the Trust towards the cost of the Paddington Health Campus project.

Mr. John Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the report of the finding of a dead body in the lavatories at Solihull Hospital. [203581]

Dr. Ladyman: This matter has been investigated by the police and reported to the coroner. An investigation is being carried out by the Birmingham Heartlands and Solihull NHS Trust.

Mixed Wards

Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on his Department's policy towards mixed wards in hospitals. [207733]

 
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Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department has given a clear commitment to improve patient privacy and dignity, and has set three objectives for national health service trusts, which require them to provide single-sex accommodation for hospital in-patients.

We use the term "accommodation" rather than "wards", as this expands the scope of the requirement to segregate men and women to areas which do not fall within the traditional definition of a ward, for example to care environments which are residential in design.

Single-sex accommodation is defined as single-sex sleeping areas, separate bathroom and toilet facilities for men and women and, for those trusts delivering mental health services, safe facilities for the mentally ill. The separation of male and female sleeping areas can be achieved in a variety of ways, including the use of single rooms and combinations of single-sex bays.

The NHS has worked hard to achieve our standards. By December 2003,

99 per cent. of NHS trusts provided single-sex sleeping accommodation for planned admissions and have robust operational policies in place to protect: patients' privacy and dignity;

99 per cent. of NHS trusts met the additional criteria set to ensure the safety of patients who are mentally ill; and

97 per cent. of NHS trusts provided properly segregated bathroom and toilet facilities for men and women.

The small number of NHS trusts who have yet to achieve the objectives have hospital development works underway, the completion of which will bring them to the required standard.

In some circumstances, such as emergency admissions, the use of mixed-sex accommodation may be unavoidable. This is regrettable, but no hospital will turn a patient away because a bed appropriate to their gender is not immediately available. Good practice indicates that patients in this situation be moved to appropriate single-sex accommodation within 48 hours.

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