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5 Jun 2006 : Column 389W—continued
Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many operations were completed at the Trafford Surgical Centre in Greater Manchester in 2005, broken down by type of operation. [70436]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Greater Manchester Surgical Centre opened in July 2005 and had provided 4,704 procedures at the end of March 2006. A breakdown by specialty is shown in the table.
| Number | |
Tuberculosis
Mr. Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many incidences of tuberculosis were identified in each primary care trust in North Cumbria in each of the last five years. [68466]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The information requested is shown in the table.
| Primary care trust | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005( 1) | Total |
| (1) Provisional data for 2005. Note: The NOIDS data provided are derived from tuberculosis cases reported within North Cumbria local authorities from 2001 to 2004. PCT boundaries are not exactly coterminous with local authority boundaries but collectively the Carlisle and District, Eden Valley and West Cumbria PCTs (Allerdale and Copeland) comprise North Cumbria. Source: Statutory Notifications of Infectious Diseases (NOIDS), Health Protection Agency. Data as at 5 May 2006. | ||||||
Ultra-orphan Drug Treatments
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what her policy is on the funding of ultra-orphan drug treatments; and if she will make a statement. [74188]
Andy Burnham: Ultra-orphan drug treatment for a specific set of diseases, Lysosomal Storage Disorders, has been nationally commissioned by the National Specialist Commissioning Advisory Group (NSCAG) since April 2005, for an initial two-year period until March 2007. The 2006-07 budget for this service is £58 million. NSCAG is part of the Department and currently commissions services for 33 very rare conditions on a national basis.
Funding arrangements for other ultra-orphan drugs are a matter for individual primary care trusts.
Waiting Times
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to question 70933, on waiting times, how many in-patient breaches of target would be necessary for the Government to conclude that their operating standard of six months for in-patient admissions was not being achieved. [72497]
Andy Burnham: No explicit level has been set.
The national health service currently admits around 470,000 patients per month. At the end of March 2006, 199 people had been waiting for longer than six months, that is one patient waiting at that point for every 2,350 patients admitted during the month and the Government therefore consider that the operating standard is being met.
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to question 70990, on waiting times, which NHS organisations risks of breaches of the six-month waiting time for inpatient admissions are an issue; how many are being closely supported by her Department in consequence; and what support each is receiving. [72525]
Andy Burnham: There have been very few breaches of the six-month in-patient waiting times standard since it came into effect on 31 December 2005.
Our assessment is that the overall risk of breaches remains low. Administrative errors have been the cause of breaches for the majority of organisations which have reported them and we expect such errors to be swiftly rectified by the local national health service.
As a consequence, the Department continues to discuss performance with all strategic health authorities (SHAs) on a regular basis and expects SHAs to support the local NHS to deliver the six-month inpatient standard. The Department is not providing direct support to any NHS trust at present.
Walsall Primary Care Trust
Mr. Shepherd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent by Walsall Primary Care Trust on capital projects in the Aldridge-Brownhills constituency in each of the last five years. [68934]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The information is not available centrally in the format requested.
Capital allocations to Walsall Teaching Primary Care Trust are shown in Table 1.
| Table 1 | |
| Operational total (£000) | |
In addition, Birmingham and The Black Country Strategic Health Authority (SHA) has received strategic capital allocations, which are shown in Table 2.
| Table 2 | |
| Strategic total (£000) | |
Birmingham and The Black Country SHA has also been allocated a share of the £100 million per year capital access fund, shown in Table 3.
| Table 3 | |
| Access fund allocation (£000) | |
Water Fluoridation
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance has been issued to strategic health authorities and primary care trusts on consultation arrangements for the proposed water fluoridation. [71328]
Ms Rosie Winterton: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to him on 18 April 2006, Official Report, column 124W.
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment she has made of the independence of the National Fluoride Information Centre; and how the centre is funded; [71336]
(2) what research has been carried out by the National Fluoride Information Centre on the amount of fluoride people in the North West are consuming; [71337]
(3) what research has been undertaken by the National Fluoride Information Centre on all aspects of fluoride use since it was set up; [71338]
(4) what the cost to the NHS was of setting up the National Fluoride Information Centre. [71339]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The National Fluoride Information Centre (NFIC) is an academically independent research unit based at Manchester University. It provides objective information on all aspects of fluorides and fluoridation derived from scientific literature and reviewed by independent scientific experts. The Department has committed funding of £125,000 per annum for the three years from 2004-05 to 2006-07.
The NFIC is currently carrying out research into the temporal effects of water fluoridation on dental fluorosis, the effect water fluoridation has on the dental health of adults, the use of new tools to diagnose dental caries which may enable randomised control trials to be undertaken on the effects of water fluoridation and the monitoring of oral health in Europe to compare dental caries levels with those in England.
Young Offenders (Mental Health)
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people are receiving treatment for mental health conditions in young offenders institutions; and how many are receiving psychological therapies. [67642]
Ms Rosie Winterton: This information is not held centrally. All offenders aged 18 to 21 receive screening on reception into custody to assess their health needs, and this includes mental health. All young offenders institutions have mental health in-reach teams. Comprehensive mental health needs assessments are made to identify the needs of individuals, and subsequent provision may include psychological therapies.
Northern Ireland
Abortions
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many women in Northern Ireland chose to abort their foetus due to being informed that the baby, if born, might suffer from (a) cerebral palsy, (b) Down's syndrome and (c) any other mental/physical condition in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement. [74221]
Paul Goggins: Abortion can be undertaken in Northern Ireland only where it is necessary to save the life of the mother or where the continuance of the pregnancy is likely to have serious and long-term effects on her mental or physical health.
The following table provides figures for the number of medical abortions recorded in Northern Ireland hospitals for each year from 2002 to 2004 (the latest year available).
| Number | |
Air Miles
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many air miles have been accrued by senior civil servants on official business in (a) each Department in Northern Ireland and (b) his Department in each of the last three years; and how they were used. [70493]
Mr. Hanson: The information requested on the number of air miles accrued by senior civil servants on official business during the last three years, and how these were used, is not held and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Civil servants accruing air miles when travelling on Government business are not permitted to use them for private purposes.
Alcohol in Pregnancy
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the prevalence of (a) foetal alcohol syndrome and (b) other complications resulting from alcohol consumption during pregnancy in the Province. [74650]
Paul Goggins: The data cannot be provided in the manner requested. It is not possible to make an assessment of the prevalence of Foetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) or other alcohol-related pregnancy complications in Northern Ireland as there is no database or registry of people in Northern Ireland with FAS or other possible related complications.
Allergy Services
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what allergy services are provided in Northern Ireland. [74374]
Paul Goggins: There are many different types of allergic conditions affecting both adults and children. These may be simple or complex, acute or chronic. The range of services available to diagnose and treat these conditions therefore is equally varied. The main elements are summarised in the table.
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