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24 May 2007 : Column 1512W—continued
Health Services: Prisons
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what mechanisms exist to monitor the accuracy of statistics provided in reporting on the provision of health care in prison establishments; and if she will make a statement; [137713]
(2) what mechanisms exist to allow staff to report the submission of statistical inaccuracies on the provision of health care in prison establishments; and if she will make a statement. [137714]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department uses a system of star ratings to monitor the state of prison health care services across England and Wales. This is based on a framework of measures, including prison self-assessments, external inspection reports, and prisons’ performance against key areas such as mental health and dental waiting times.
Data are collected for each prison establishment via Prison Service Area Offices. It is for primary care trusts, in conjunction with other stakeholders, to ensure the quality of returns concerning prison health care to the Department, Any inaccuracies will be resolved locally.
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will place in the Library a copy of the Secure Healthcare bid for the delivery of health care provision in prison establishments. [137715]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Secure Healthcare application for the Department’s social enterprise pathfinder status was one of 381, of which 26 were successful. Elements of each application contain “commercial—in confidence” information about potential social enterprises. It would therefore be inappropriate to place a copy of any of the applications in the Library.
The tender bid for the delivery of health care provision in HM Prison Wandsworth is a local matter for HM Prison Wandsworth and Wandsworth primary care trust.
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision the prison health service makes for prisoners with mental health problems. [138467]
Ms Rosie Winterton:
Mental health services for prisoners have been a key part of the Government’s recent reforms of health services for prisoners. The
Department is now investing £20 million a year in national health service mental health in-reach services for prisoners. These are community mental health teams working within prisons and are now available in 102 prisons, with some 360 extra staff employed. Every prison in England and Wales has access to these services.
I also refer my hon. Friend to the answers given to him by my hon. Friend the Minister of State, Ministry of Justice (Mr. Sutcliffe) on 21 May 2007, Official Report, columns 1146-7W.
Hearing Impaired: Health Services
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what the Government’s policy is on the referral by general practitioners of audiology patients directly to ear, nose and throat consultants; what the difference in cost is per patient to the NHS of such referrals; and if she will make a statement; [137199]
(2) whether audiogram tests conducted by registered hearing aid dispensers are acceptable diagnostic results for NHS treatment, including the fitting of hearing aids; and if she will make a statement. [137200]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: Patients seen by the general practitioner (GP) are referred directly to ear, nose and throat consultants if they are a more complicated case. Otherwise, a GP would normally refer an audiology patient to the adult hearing services within an audiology department for routine hearing loss. It is the responsibility of individual practitioners to make the most appropriate referral based on their clinical judgment.
We do not hold information about the difference in cost per patient to the national health service of such referrals.
Decisions about audiogram tests are a local matter which will be agreed between the hearing aid dispenser and the audiology service that receives patients who have been tested by the dispenser.
Hospital Wards: Essex
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of beds in the Mid-Essex Hospital Trust area were in mixed wards in (a) 1997 and (b) the latest available date. [138599]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 23 May 2007]: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Hospitals: Security
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she is taking to increase hospital security. [137885]
Ms Rosie Winterton: In April 2003 the NHS Security Management Service (NHS SMS) was created and assumed responsibility for all security related issues in the NHS in England with a particular priority given to violence against NHS staff. A comprehensive strategy has been implemented detailing both preventative and reactive action to be taken to tackle security related problems both nationally and locally.
An integral element of the strategy is the creation of a role for an accredited local security management specialist for every trust to develop the security work previously undertaken in the NHS to raise the standards of that work to a consistently high level.
In June 2006, the Department published a consultation paper, “Tackling Nuisance and Disturbance Behaviour on NHS Healthcare Premises: a paper for consultation”. As a result of the positive response to the proposals they are being explored with the Home Office, with a view to their introduction into a Criminal Justice Bill.
Hyperactivity
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children were diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in each of the last five years; and what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the diagnostic mechanisms in place. [136839]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: Regarding the number of children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in each of the last five years, I refer my hon. Friend to the response I gave on 3 May 2007, Official Report, column 1844W.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines stipulate that the diagnosis of ADHD and the initiation of treatment, should be undertaken by a child and adolescent psychiatrist or a paediatrician with relevant expertise but that continued prescribing and monitoring may be performed by general practitioners. Drug therapy should be part of a comprehensive treatment programme including advice and support to parents and teachers.
Macular Degeneration
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England were (i) diagnosed with and (ii) treated for age-related macular degeneration in each year since 1997. [138217]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Information on the number of people diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration is not collected centrally.
The majority of patients receiving treatment for macular degeneration are likely to be treated as out-patients. We do not hold data showing the number of out-patient attendances for this condition.
The following table shows the number of in-patient admissions for those whose primary diagnosis was degeneration of the macular and posterior pole. We do not hold data for Jarrow which is covered by South Tyneside Primary Care Trust.
| Finished consultant episodes | |||
| South Tyneside PCT | North East strategic health authorities | England | |
Maternity Services
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what records her Department collects on the (a) performance and (b) capacity of the NHS to provide a safe and satisfactory (i) antenatal and (ii) post-natal service. [136507]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government are committed to the principles of good quality woman-centred maternity care. We have put in place a number of measures for improving maternity services, including during the antenatal and post-natal period. The National Health Service Operating Framework 2007-08 requires all primary care trusts to undertake an assessment of current services, identify gaps and barriers to service development in preparation for delivering “Maternity Matters”, the Government’s vision for maternity services.
While the information is not collected centrally, the Healthcare Commission assesses the performance of the NHS against the standards set out in “Standards for Better Health” published 2004. These assessments are published in the Annual Health Checks which are available on the Commission’s website at www.healthcarecommission.org.uk. In carrying out its assessments, the Commission looks specifically at how patient safety is enhanced by the use of processes and practices which prevent or reduce the risk of harm to patients.
Mental Health Bill
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to her statement of 16 April 2007, Official Report, column 58, on the Mental Health Bill, what the evidential basis was for stating that several thousand people have been denied treatment on the grounds that they are not susceptible to treatment. [135818]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Under the Mental Health Act, the decision to offer treatment of a patient presenting with a personality disorder(s) (PD) it is a matter of individual clinical judgement. Until very recently appropriate and evidence based interventions for PD have been very limited and their availability nationally inequitable. The prevalence of PD in the general adult population is between 10 to 13 per cent. and upward of 63 per cent. in the offender population. It is therefore a reasonable assumption that over the years since 1984, when the legislation came into force, that thousands of individual mainstream and forensic patients will not have gained access to appropriate treatments for their PD.
Mental Health Services
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many adults were formally detained under the provisions of the Mental Health Act 1983 in each year since 1997-98; and how many adult inpatient beds for (a) mental illness specialties and (b) learning disabilities specialties there were in each year since 1997; [131872]
(2) how many people under the age of 18 were formally detained under the provisions of the Mental Health Act 1983 in each year since 1997-98. [131873]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Information about the number of formal detentions under the Mental Health Act 1983 since 1997-98 and on the number of inpatient beds for mental illness and learning disabilities is shown in the following tables. These figures relate to all age groups of adults and children and separate data covering this period has not been collected centrally about the number of people under the age of 18 who were formally detained.
| Table 1: Number of detentions under the Mental Health Act 1983 and other legislation (England): children and adults of all ages | |
| Number | |
| Source: Information Centre published data form KP90 | |
| Table 2: Number of national health service beds for mental illness specialties (England) | |
| Number | |
| Source: Information Centre published data form KH03 | |
| Table 3: Number of NHS beds for learning disability specialties (England) | |
| Number | |
| Source: Information Centre published data form KH03 | |
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