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22 May 2006 : Column 1592Wcontinued
Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of waiting times for (a) speech therapy and (b) cataract operations; and if she will make a statement. [72283]
Andy Burnham: As speech and language therapy is not a consultant-led speciality, data on waiting times for this treatment are not centrally available.
The official figures on waiting times show the length of time that people currently on the list for treatment have been waiting. Those data is collected at consultant led speciality level, for example ophthalmology. It is not possible to split those data down to show waiting list data for specific operations, for example cataract operations. Therefore, the information requested is not centrally available.
However, a different source of information can be used to provide an approximate measure of the times that patients have waited for admission for specific operations such as those relating to cataracts. The most up-to-date data are for 2004-05 which are shown in the table.
Mean/median number of days waited for a cataract operation in NHS Hospitals in England 1996-97 to 2004-05 | ||
Mean waiting time | Median waiting time | |
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether the NHS will pay the work permit charges of trainee doctors from the Commonwealth; [64675]
(2) whether hospitals employing large numbers of Commonwealth doctors will be allocated extra funding to pay for new work permits. [65033]
Ms Rosie Winterton: It is the responsibility of any employer to pay for applications for work permits. No specific funding will be allocated to national health service trusts for work permits but primary care trust allocations are increasing by about 20 per cent. in 2006-07 and 2007-08.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will take steps to ensure that doctors from overseas who graduated from a UK medical school are allowed to complete all their training in the NHS. [66842]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department has been working with the Home Office to put in place transitional arrangements. Those doctors and dentists who were offered a relevant training post before the changes were announced will be given the opportunity to complete their training.
Doctors from outside the European Economic Area who have graduated in the United Kingdom will have up to three years to complete their foundation training. Once the foundation course has been completed doctors will need to meet the normal requirements of the immigration rules.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consultation she held with (a) the British Medical Association, (b) organisations representing immigrant doctors and (c) hospital trusts on the recent changes to immigration rules affecting doctors. [65014]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The immigration rules for postgraduate doctors and dentists (permit-free training) were amended in July 2005. Since then officials have been discussing with the Conference of Postgraduate Medical Deans, the British Medical Associations junior doctors committee and organisations representing overseas doctors the arrangements for those already in training and to agree what further guidance and clarification is needed to deal with the new arrangements.
The Department has been working closely with NHS Employers to provide guidance to the national health service.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the impact of the new immigration regulations on the provision of locums. [65030]
Ms Rosie Winterton: No assessment has been made of the impact of the new immigration regulations on the provision of locums. The practice of employing locum doctors under the old permit-free training rules was a misuse of the system and no substitute for good work force planning.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Health Department what steps she is taking (a) to protect the position of and (b) to encourage the employment of medical graduates from the Commonwealth in the NHS from adverse effects of the new work permit requirements. [65056]
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps her Department is taking to assist non-EU doctors affected by changes to the work permit regulations. [65677]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department has been working with the Home Office to put in place transitional arrangements. Those doctors and dentists who were offered a relevant training post before the changes were announced will be given the opportunity to complete their training.
Overseas doctors and dentists will still be able to come and train in the United Kingdom. They will now be considered as being in employment for immigration purposes and will need to meet the requirements of an employment category of the immigration rules.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which organisations were consulted by her Department concerning the effects on medical staff of changes to the work permit regulations due to come into force in July. [65675]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The immigration rules for postgraduate doctors and dentists (permit-free training) were first amended in July 2005. Since then officials have been discussing with the Conference of Postgraduate Medical Deans, the British Medical Associations junior doctors committee and organisations representing overseas doctors the arrangements for those already in training and to agree what further guidance and clarification is needed to deal with further changes that came into operation on 3 April 2006.
The Department has been working closely with NHS Employers to provide guidance to the national health service, including transitional arrangements.
Mr. Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on her discussions with the British Medical Association regarding the impact of the work permit regulations affecting non-EU doctors which comes into force in July. [69756]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Departmental officials have been working closely with the junior doctors committee of the British Medical Association (BMA) since the changes to the immigration rules in July 2005. The
Department continues to discuss with the BMA the arrangements for those already in training and to agree what further guidance and clarification is needed to deal with the new arrangements.
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