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25 July 2006 : Column 1221W—continued
Hospital Provision (South-east)
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what her future plans are for hospitals in each council area in the new regional health authority area for the South East; and if she will make a statement. [86279]
Caroline Flint: The south eastern area of England is now covered by two strategic health authorities: NHS South East Coast (covering Surrey, Sussex, Kent and Medway) and NHS South Central (covering Thames Valley, Hampshire and Isle of Wight). It is for primary care trusts in partnership with strategic health authorities and other local stakeholders to determine how best to use their funds to meet national and local priorities for improving health, tackling health inequalities and modernising services.
Incoming Hospital Telephone Calls
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision is made with regard to the cost of incoming hospital telephone calls provided by Patientline, Premier and Hospital Telephone Services for those who are unable to pay. [87176]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Bedside televisions and telephones represent an enhanced service, providing additional choice for patients.
Incoming callers who are unable to pay for the incoming call charge to the bedside telephone can still get a message to the patient via the nurse station as they have always been able to do in the past.
Information Technology
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to her answer of 14 July 2006, Official Report, column 2159W, on information technology, what (a) the services covered by the contracts and projects added to the original scope of the programme and (b) the additional services beyond the scope of the core national contracts were; why these services and associated costs were not expected when the national programme was originally procured; whether she expects to spend additional money on (i) the services covered by the contracts and projects added to the original scope of the programme and (ii) the additional services beyond the scope of the core national contracts in future years; and if she will make a statement. [87696]
Caroline Flint: The contracts and projects added to the original scope of the national programme were for the provision of a secure email and directory service for national health service staff, including its associated relay service and archive facility, and for the provision of central data stores required for picture archiving and communications systems (PACS).
The additional services beyond the scope of the original national core contracts comprised the provision of extra capacity in connections within the new national broadband network (N3); additional services under choose and book to support new policy requirements relating to offering patients requiring planned hospital care booked appointments from a choice of hospitals; and support for systems integration, for example to enable suppliers of information technology to NHS organisations to test the integration of their software with the spine.
All of these additions, which are itemised and described in the National Audit Office’s (IMAO’s) report, were either as a result of decisions to extend the scope of the programme taken subsequent to the original procurement phase, to respond to the consequences of policy changes affecting its delivery, or to deal with unforeseen technical challenges arising in the course of implementation.
As the NAO report also makes clear, except for the provision of extra capacity for N3, for which expenditure is dependent on demand, all of the additions are the subject of fixed-price contracts which mean that they will not require additional expenditure, although contractors will be paid less if they fail to deliver in line with their contracts.
Kettering General Hospital NHS Trust
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she expects the vacancy for a permanent chair of Kettering General Hospital NHS Trust to be advertised. [88820]
Andy Burnham: The Secretary of State has delegated the appointment of Chairs of national health service trusts to the NHS Appointments Commission. I have asked Sir William Wells, Chairman of the NHS Appointments Commission, to write direct to the hon. Member as soon as possible.
Learning and Development
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what continued funding is planned for the Government's commitment to lifelong learning for the NHS workforce. [86146]
Andy Burnham: Funding for continuing professional development and lifelong learning for the national health service workforce is included as part of the baseline allocation to strategic health authorities (SHAs). How it is allocated is for individual SHAs to determine locally in relation to their workforce planning strategies.
Long-term Conditions (Needs' Assessments)
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what measures are in place to assess the care needs of individuals with long-term and fluctuating conditions; [88799]
(2) what steps she is taking to ensure that individuals with long-term fluctuating conditions are adequately assessed; [88800]
(3) what percentage of individuals at the early stages of long-term fluctuating conditions receive social care. [88801]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The national health service and social services Departments across the country work together, and with other stakeholders, to deliver high quality, timely and integrated care to those people who need it using the substantial extra resources made available to them by this Government and in accordance with the principles set out in the documents “Supporting people with long term conditions” and “The national service framework for long term conditions”. Both documents are available on the Department’s website at:
www.dh.gov.uk/PolicyAndGuidance/HealthAndSocialCare Topics/LongTermConditions/fs/en.
The assessment of needs is the responsibility of professionals and care staff who are accountable to their employers arid in most cases subject to professional regulation. Health and social care systems are inspected by the independent Healthcare Commission and the Commission for Social Care Inspection respectively.
Information on the number of individuals at the early stages of long-term fluctuating conditions who receive social care is not available.
McKinsey and Company
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the financial value is of work commissioned in each of the last three years by (a) her Department and (b) other NHS organisations and agencies with McKinsey and Co.; and if she will make a statement. [84279]
Andy Burnham: The total amount spent by the Department with McKinsey and Co. in the financial years 2003-04, 2004-05, and 2005-06 is shown in the table.
| Expenditure (£000s) | |
The Department does not collect information from the national health service or agencies on this type of expenditure. NHS organisations account separately for their financial performance, publishing their own set of annual financial accounts.
Mental Health
John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information health trusts routinely provide to the police on people in the community who are mentally ill and have a history of violent behaviour. [86080]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Information is not passed routinely from health trusts to the police. When individuals are considered a risk to others, they become subject to the provisions of multi-agency public protection panels set up by the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were diagnosed as having mental illness in each London borough in each year since 1997. [87494]
Ms Rosie Winterton: This information is not held centrally.
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of the annual cost of (a) secure and (b) other residential mental health treatment in each of the last three years. [88940]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Information is not available in the requested format. Annual surveys of investment in mental health services covering 2001-02 to 2005-06, which are available on the Department's website at www.dh.gov.uk/mentalhealth, provide information on planned expenditure on various inpatient and residential mental health service provision including secure and high dependency services.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding was given to each mental health care trust in each of the last five years. [88656]
Ms Rosie Winterton: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 16 June 2006, Official Report, Column 1555W.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to introduce an offence for workers ill-treating or neglecting someone with mental health problems or learning disabilities in their care. [79376]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Section 127 of the Mental Health Act 1983 already makes it an offence for people to ill-treat or wilfully neglect patients under their care. We would expect the employer to report such matters to the police or to take disciplinary action depending on the severity of the abuse or neglect. The ill-treatment or neglect of a patient is a matter which the regulatory bodies would take seriously whoever reported the matter to them.
John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many initial hospital orders have been made under section 37 of the Mental Health Act for each category of mental disorder in each of the last five years; and how many of the initial orders were renewed under section 20 for each category of mental disorder in each year. [84117]
Ms Rosie Winterton: This information is not available in the requested format.
Some information is available in relation to inpatients who were formally detained in hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983, between 1994-95 and 2004-05, from the detained patients bulletin at
www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/inpatientdetmha94to05/mhbulletin/file.
Some information is also available about guardianship under the Mental Health Act 1983 from the guardianship bulletin at:
www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/icpublication.2006-01-04.5354930463/04117869.pdf.file.
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on her plans for mental health funding. [85644]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Funding for mental health is allocated directly to primary care trust (PCTs). It is for PCTs, in partnership with strategic health authorities and other local stakeholders, to determine how best to use their funds to meet national and local priorities for improving health, tackling health inequalities and modernising services. The 2005-06 national survey of investment in mental health services, which is available on the Department’s website at: www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/13/50/11/04135011.pdf, shows that between 2001-02 and 2005-06 planned expenditure on mental health services by national health service organisations and local authorities has increased in real terms by 25 per cent.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps her Department is taking to improve child and adult mental health services. [86798]
Mr. Ivan Lewis:
Improving child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) is one of the priorities for this Government, as emphasised by the
public service agreement standard of a comprehensive CAMHS in every area of England. This commitment to improve CAMHS has been backed by significant additional funding, over £300 million over the three years 2003-04 to 2005-06.
The CAMHS module of the children's national service framework for England (published September 2004) sets the framework for CAMHS for the next 10 years. It sets the standard that all children and young people, from birth to their 18th birthday, who have mental health problems and disorders, will have access to timely, integrated, high quality multidisciplinary mental health services to ensure effective assessment, treatment and support, for them, their parents or carers, and other family members.
Adult mental health services are continuing to implement the national service framework for mental health in order to improve access to effective treatment and care, reduce unfair variation, raise standards, and provide quicker and more convenient services. In line with the targets set in the NHS Plan 343 crisis resolution, 262 assertive outreach and 109 early intervention teams were established in England at the end of March 2005. On the same day, 1,520 community gateway, 654 carer support and 648 graduate workers were in post.
Progress is also being made towards meeting the Department’s public service agreement target to reduce the death rate from suicide and undetermined injury by at least 20 per cent. by 2010. The rate is now 6.6 per cent. below the baseline.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many young people aged under 25 years are placed in adult mental health units in England. [86799]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Information is not collected on the number of 18 to 25-year-olds placed in adult mental health units nor in the exact format requested.
In the period from 1 April 2006 to 31 March 2006 in England, patients aged 17 or under spent 26,659 occupied bed days on adult psychiatric wards.
Mesothelioma
Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what palliative treatment is available to patients with mesothelioma. [87444]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The palliative treatment offered to a patient with mesothelioma will depend on their individual condition. The treatment patients should be offered is a matter for the clinical judgment of the physician responsible for their care.
Methyl Bromide
Mr. Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations she has made to supermarket chains in relation to their food procurement policies for produce treated with methyl bromide. [85605]
Ian Pearson: I have been asked to reply.
There have been no such representations because, under the Montreal protocol, the use of methyl bromide has been banned in developed countries since 2005 except for quarantine and pre-shipment purposes and critical uses agreed by parties to the protocol. A similar ban comes into force in developing countries in 2015.
Methyl bromide is an ozone depleting substance and the Government's policy is only to support further UK critical uses where lack of availability would cause significant market disruption and there are no technical or economically feasible alternatives.
Midwives
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many vacant midwives’ posts there are in (a) Wakefield West and (b) Eastern Wakefield primary care trust. [85764]
Ms Rosie Winterton: As at March 2005, there were no vacant midwives posts at Wakefield West primary care trust (PCT) and Eastern Wakefield PCT. Data for 2006 is not yet available.
Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many students entered midwifery training in each year since 1997. [85767]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The information requested is shown in the following table.
| Midwifery training commissions academic year | |
| Number of commissions | |
| Source: Strategic health authority quarterly monitoring returns | |
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