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12 Sept 2005 : Column 2678W—continued
Baby Units (Essex)
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the hospitals in (a) Essex and (b) the Metropolitan police area of London which have a specially equipped baby unit; and if she will make a statement. [14799]
Jane Kennedy: The Department does not collect information on the hospitals which have specially equipped baby units. The Department collects information at a trust level which shows those trusts which have neonatal intensive care cots. The Department also holds information on trusts which have beds in intensive care neonates or other general and acute neonatal and children's wards, which may include special care baby unit cots.
The following trusts have neonatal intensive care cots.
Essex Strategic Health Authority (SHA)
The following trusts have beds in intensive care neonates or other general and acute neonatal and children wards which may include special care baby unit cots.
Bedford Hospital NHS Trust
Mrs. Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 14 July 2005, Official Report, columns 1184–85W, on Bedford hospital NHS trust (1)what financial outcome she expects following the discussions; [14763]
(2) what appropriate action she expects will take place following the discussions; [14764]
(3) what has been discussed between her officials and the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire strategic health authority; and if she will make minutes and records of these discussions publicly available; [14765]
(4) whether discussions are ongoing between her officials and the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire strategic health authority; [14766]
(5) what budget changes will take place following the discussions. [14767]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Discussions are ongoing between Departmental officials and the strategic health authority and until these have concluded, it would be inappropriate to comment on any possible outcome.
Mrs. Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 14 July 2005, Official Report, columns 1184–1185W, on Bedford Hospital NHS Trust, what measures the Government are putting in place to combat violent incidents against NHS staff. [14768]
Jane Kennedy: In April 2003, the national health service security management service (NHS SMS) was created and assumed policy and operational responsibility for the management of security in the national health service, including work to tackle violence against NHS staff. In November 2003 the NHS SMS introduced a comprehensive range of measures to tackle incidences of violence against NHS staff, both proactively and reactively. These included:
New concise, consistent legally-based definitions for staff to report physical and non-physical assaults.
A new, streamlined national reporting system for reporting and recording of physical assaults, which has the capacity to track cases from report to conclusion, allowing for intervention where necessary.
A requirement for health bodies to nominate a security management director, a member of the executive board, to bear overall responsibility for security management work with particular responsibilities on tackling violence; representation for security management work at the executive board level is to ensure that responsibilities are taken seriously at the highest level.
The creation of the NHS SMS legal protection unit to provide health bodies with cost effective advice on a wide range of sanctions that can be pursued, and to work with the police and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to increase the rate of prosecutions.
From April 2004, the largest-ever training programme in the United Kingdom for frontline NHS staff and professionals, designed to equip staff with the necessary skills to be able to identify and de-escalate potentially violent situations from occurring in the first place; from returns made by health bodies for the last financial year, 2004–05, it is estimated that around 85,000 frontline staff have received training in the new national syllabus.
Training for the new role of local security management specialist (LSMS) began in June 2004, with the first set accredited in October 2004. LSMSs will have specialist professional skills and expertise to investigate incidents of assaults in support of the police and the CPS to ensure that sanctions are applied against alleged offenders, where appropriate. The NHS SMS plans to have a trained and accredited LSMS in place in each health body by summer 2006.
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