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20 Mar 2006 : Column 158W—continued
Health Trainers
Mr. Kenneth Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State forHealth (1) how many health trainers are employed inthe NHS; what minimum qualifications are required for the post; and at what rate of salary they are employed; [51709]
(2) how many health trainers she estimates will be employed in the NHS when the proposals in her recent White Paper on Community Services (Cm 6737) are fully implemented; and what the total annual cost to public funds will be of employing them. [51710]
Mr. Byrne [holding answer 14 February 2006]: As was announced to Parliament on 20 July 2005
Primary care trusts and their partners, especially the spearhead primary care trusts, are planning to recruit, train, and fund health trainers from April 2006 when this funding comes on stream."
The national health service health trainer programme is in the early adopter phase, comprising some 150 primary care trusts (PCTs) including all 88 spearhead PCTs.
There are currently 214 NHS health trainers recruited to the programme, of which 192 are now under, or have completed, training.
Choosing health money has been allocated to provide 1,200 NHS health trainers by the end of financial year 2006–07.
The employment requirements are that health trainers satisfy the mandatory core competences supplied by the Department. The core competences are being finalised during the early adopter phase which finishes 31 March 2006.
Currently the national profile for a health trainer under agenda for change is being agreed, once it is finalised there will be a clear rate of salary for health trainers.
Salary is still under negotiation through the agenda for change process.
A breakdown of where the money has been spent and cost centres is shown in the table.
Health White Paper
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons her Department needs to manage the procurement of primary care medical services on behalf of primary care trusts as described in paragraph 3.46 of the White Paper, Our Health, Our Care, Our Say. [49558]
Mr. Byrne: The Department will be managing the fairness in primary care procurement to enable primary care trusts in areas with longstanding problems in health care provision to have access to the Departments expertise and experience in national procurements.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which six primary care trusts her Department is assisting in the procurement of primary care medical services as described in paragraph 3.37, of the White Paper, Our Health, Our Care, Our Say, with which suppliers the primary care trusts are in negotiation to provide primary care medical services; what the average cost is of a general practitioner consultation (a) provided by the suppliers with which primary care trusts are in negotiation and (b) in the NHS as a whole; and if she will make a statement. [49559]
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Mr. Byrne: The six primary care trusts (PCTs) taking part in the innovation in primary care contracting programme are:
As the procurement process is still underway it is not possible to provide details about any of the provider organisations that the PCTs may be in discussion with as part of this programme.
Information on the average cost of a general practitioner consultation are not routinely collected centrally.
Herceptin
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will issue guidance to primary care trusts that social factors should not be used to decide whether women with HER-2 positive early stage breast cancer should be prescribed Herceptin if they are patients for whom it would otherwise be clinically appropriate treatment. [59580]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 17 March 2006]: It would not be appropriate for Ministers to dictate, or prejudge, the factors that might properly be taken into account by a primary care trust in assessing each case, beyond advising against refusals solely on the grounds of cost.
We have no plans to issue any guidance on this matter.
Insulin
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information is being provided to diabetic patients dependent on animal insulins from health care professionals on the availability of pork and beef insulins following the announcement by Novo Nordisk that it is discontinuing its pork insulin products; and if she will make a statement. [58653]
Jane Kennedy: The Department has been in discussion with Novo Nordisk about the discontinuation of its animal insulins. The company has put in place a comprehensive support and communications package for health care professionals and patients. Wockhardt, the remaining United Kingdom supplier, has also re-affirmed its commitment to continue supplying its animal insulins and has issued a statement to health care professionals and others. Health care professionals will therefore be able to communicate the changes to patients.
Learning Disabilities
Philip Davies:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment she has made of the effect of the Valuing People initiative on the services provided to people with learning difficulties; and if she will make a statement; [57114]
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(2) what her latest estimate is of the number of people with learning difficulties (a) who have been assessed as needing support and (b) who have not received the assessed support from district care trusts in (i) Bradford district, (ii) Yorkshire and (iii) England in a one-year period; [57115]
(3) how much has been given to primary care trusts in (a) Bradford district, (b) Yorkshire and (c) England to provide support for people with learning disabilities in each of the last eight years. [57117]
Mr. Byrne: The Government's third report on learning disability, Valuing People: Making things better" was published in November 2005. The report details what the Government has done during 2004 for people with learning disabilities and also details what our next steps will be. This is available on the Department's website at www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/12/38/69/04123869.pdf
The number of people with learning difficulties who have been assessed as needing support is not held centrally.
The learning disability development fund (LDDF) was introduced in 2002–03. Revenue allocations to primary care trusts (PCTs) from the LDDF are shown in the table.
From 2003–04 to 2005–06 LDDF capital allocations of £20 million per annum were made as part of strategic capital allocations to strategic health authorities (SHAs). The LDDF is not separately identified in SHA capital allocations.
The LDDF is only a small part of the funding available to PCTs for learning disabilities services. PCTs also have money available to them through specialist budgets, continuing care budgets and their mainstream budgets for example, where they can draw funding from to fund learning disabilities services. It is up to PCTs to decide how they allocate funds.
| 2002–03 | 2003–04 | 2004–05 | 2005–06 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bradford district(55) | 183 | 188 | 193 | 407 |
| Yorkshire(56) | 1,763 | 1,927 | 1.973 | 4,138 |
| England | 19,598 | 21,052 | 19,232 | 41,595 |
(55)Bradford district is defined as Bradford Health Authority for 2002–03 and Airedale PCT, Bradford City PCT, Bradford South and West PCT and North Bradford PCT for 2003–04 onwards
(56)Yorkshire is defined as North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire Strategic Health Authority (SHA), South Yorkshire SHA and West Yorkshire SHA.
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will bring forward proposals to make the provision of respite care for people with learning disabilities a statutory duty of local authorities. [57225]
Mr. Byrne:
This Government introduced the Carers Grant in 1999 to support councils in providing breaks and services for carers in England, including those who support people with learning disabilities. The grant has increased each year and has provided an extra £635 million over the past six years. We have confirmed that it will be worth £185 million in 2006–07 and in
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2007–08. This will mean that, by 2008, we will have invested over £l billion in services and support for carers of all groups.
In addition, we have listened to the considerable public support for carers throughout our extensive consultation process prior to the publication of the white paper Our Health, Our Care, Our Say". As a result, we propose to offer a new deal for carers to improve support for them through a range of measures. This will include ensuring that a short-term, home based respite support to all carers in crisis or emergency situations is established in each council's area.
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