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2 Nov 2005 : Column 1136W—continued
Defect and Failure Reporting System
Steve Webb:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 12 September 2005, Official Report, column 2663W, on the Defect and Failure
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Reporting System, what the main categories of defects were; and how many defects there were in each of the previous years for which figures are available. [18891]
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Mr. Byrne: The information requested is shown in the table.
Departmental Records
Mr. Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what statistics her Department records relating to applications for vacancies for (a) junior doctor, (b) pre-registration house officer and (c) senior house officer posts; and what recent assessment she has made of the competition for jobs at each level. [19670]
Mr. Byrne: Information on applications for vacancies in respect of junior doctors, pre-registration house officer (PRHO) and senior house officer (SHO) posts is not collected centrally.
Entry into the training grades is competitive and there has always been healthy competition for posts.
The number of specialist registrar (SpR) posts available is based on the future demand for trained specialists in each specialty determined by service demand and the impact of key government objectives.
We are aware that the number of applicants for most SHO posts has risen this year and it is likely that this is especially so for SHO posts in popular areas such as
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London and in popular specialties such as surgery. However, some of the reports of the difficulty in obtaining SHO posts have been exaggerated.
We value highly those doctors in whose education and training we have invested heavily, and recognise that they have made a substantial commitment to the medical profession and a future career in the national health service. We want these doctors to progress and develop their careers in the NHS where we see them as the doctors of the future, delivering modernised patient centred services.
Design Pilot Projects
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much her Department is paying for each Inquiry by design pilot project undertaken by The Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment. [19975]
Jane Kennedy: The Department commissioned The Prince's Foundation to undertake three pilot inquiry by designs for the national health service. The Department has provided the following funding for the pilots:
| £ | |
|---|---|
| Cherry Knowle Hospital | 70,000 |
| Liverpool Children's Hospital | 65,000 |
| Sutton Health Campus (critical care centre) | 60,000 |
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when The Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment was commissioned to undertake an inquiry by design pilot for the NHS. [19977]
Jane Kennedy:
NHS Estates, an Executive agency of the Department, first commissioned The Prince's Foundation to undertake an enquiry by design (EbD) in
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2003. Following the success of the first pilot EbD, the Department commissioned a further two pilot EbD's in 2004.
Drugs
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS has spent on drugs in each of the last eight years; and how many prescriptions were made. [18829]
Jane Kennedy: The national health service drugs spend for England from 1996–97 to 2003–04 is shown in table 2.
The number of prescription items dispensed in the community, rounded to the nearest million, is shown in table 1.
| Number (million) | |
|---|---|
| 1997 | 500 |
| 1998 | 513 |
| 1999 | 530 |
| 2000 | 552 |
| 2001 | 587 |
| 2002 | 617 |
| 2003 | 650 |
| 2004 | 686 |
Notes:
Prescription information is taken from the PCA system, supplied by the Prescription Pricing Authority (PPA), and is based on a full analysis of all prescriptions dispensed in the community i.e. by community pharmacists and appliance contractors, dispensing doctors, and prescriptions submitted by prescribing doctors for items personally administered in England. Also included are prescriptions written in Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man but dispensed in England. The data does not cover drugs dispensed in hospitals, including mental health trusts, or private prescriptions.
Source:
Prescription cost analysis (PCA) data.
Notes:
1. The total actual cost of drugs and appliances prescribed by general practitioners/nurses within England plus any central budget expenditure or locally authorised payments. NB. Primary care actual drug cost = Net ingredient cost + VAT + container costs—discount allowance.
2. Primary care NET figures include pharmaceutical price regulation scheme (PPRS) receipt savings.
3. Hospital and community health services expenditure on drugs includes medical gases.
4. From 2000–01, figures are in resource terms, prior to this figures are in cash terms. Cash figures relate to February to January prescribing due to delay in prescription processing and payment calculations. Resource figures represent the actual cost between April to March.
Source:
PPA, England.
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Dr. Richard Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what criteria are used in deciding on the referral of a new, licensed drug to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence; and if she will make a statement. [20358]
Jane Kennedy: Information about the criteria used in deciding on the referral to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence of a new, licensed drug is available on the Department's website at:
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