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Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the midwifery vacancy rate for Southampton University Hospitals Trust has been in each of the last five years. [29190]
Caroline Flint: The information requested is shown in the table.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many midwives have been employed by Southampton University Hospitals Trust in each of the last five years (a) in numerical terms and (b) as full-time equivalents. [29191]
Caroline Flint: The information requested is shown in the table.
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what proportion of maternity units in England have vacancies in midwifery posts; and what proportion of these vacancies have been unfilled for at least three months; [29019]
(2) what steps she is taking to increase the number of (a) student midwives and (b) midwives in practice in the national health service. [29020]
Mr. Byrne [holding answer 16 November 2005]: Information is not collected centrally on the numbers of vacancies in each maternity unit. The table shows vacancies for midwives that have lasted three months or more in national health service organisations as at March 2005.
Over 70 per cent. of NHS organisations that employ midwives did not report any vacancies lasting three months or more. As at March 2005, 348 midwifery posts had been vacant for three months or more, which represents a vacancy rate of 1.8 per cent., which is a fall from 3.3 per cent. the previous year.
As at September 2004, there were 24,844 midwives employed in the NHS, which is an increase of 2,272 or 10 per cent. since 2000. A range of work force supply initiatives are in place to ensure the NHS work force continues to meet service needs. These include: improving pay and conditions; encouraging the NHS to become a better, more flexible and diverse employer; increasing training; investing in child care and continuing professional development; attracting back returners and running national and international recruitment campaigns.
NHS Employers is working closely with the NHS to help embed these strategies locally within their organisations.
28 Nov 2005 : Column 276W
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many scans have been delivered to date under the Alliance Medical contract for mobile MRI scans; how many (a) rejected and (b) repeat scans there were; and what assessment she has made of the (i) timeliness of, (ii) quality of and (iii) customer satisfaction with scans provided under the contract. [24200]
Mr. Byrne: Over 83,000 scans had been delivered via the Alliance Medical Limited (AML) mobile scanning units by the end of October 2005. Of these, less than 1.5 per cent. were repeat scans, which is in line with national health service practice and incorporates the figure for rejected scans as patients are automatically re-imaged by AML.
AML is now exceeding its contracted reporting time of four working days, with 97 per cent. of scan reports returned within three days.
Scan quality is independently audited every six months by the clinical guardian of the contract, Professor Adrian Dixon; NHS sponsors; and AML's head of clinical governance.
The last audit, which compared a sample of scans provided by the NHS and the independent sector, carried out by the Royal College of Radiologists in conjunction with the Department of Health, was published in May 2005. The findings stated that there was little difference in the technical quality of magnetic resonance examinations between the two services".
In addition, scan quality is monitored consistently throughout the contract as an integral part of the clinical governance framework. Any discrepancies or concerns are audited on a case by case basis by the clinical guardian of the contract.
In October, 90 per cent. of patients rated the service as excellent or good.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether patients who have waited longer than 20 weeks for (a) an MRI and (b) a CT scan at a hospital run by an NHS foundation trust will be offered the choice to be treated elsewhere. [25109]
Mr. Byrne: The Department are currently discussing how choice of scan relates to national health service foundation trusts with monitor and the position will be clarified before choice of scan commences on the 30 November. There is no reason, however, that NHS foundation trusts should not accept patients from other providers where they wish to do so and have the available capacity.
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in each county of England suffer from secondary progressive multiple sclerosis. [29964]
Mr. Byrne [holding answer 21 November 2005]: The information requested is not available centrally in the requested format. However, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has previously estimated that in England and Wales multiple sclerosis (MS) affects around 63,000 people and that secondary progressive MS accounts for about 45 per cent. of the total population with MS.
Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of HTLV-1 associated myelopathy have been recorded in each year since 1988. [30625]
Mr. Byrne: Specific data on the number of cases of HTLV-I associated myelopathy are not collected.
Research, published in 1994, has identified 231 cases of HTLV types one and two associated myelopathy in England and Wales for the period 1986 to 1992.
Details are available on the Health Protection Agency's website at: hpa.org.uk/cdr/archives/CDRreview/1994/cdrr0694.pdf.
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