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16 July 2007 : Column 174Wcontinued
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which hospitals in Greater London do not have private finance initiative debts. [148575]
Mr. Bradshaw: Under a private finance initiative contract a debt is incurred in the course of normal commercial practice under which the private sector partner submits a monthly invoice for services provided. Information is not collected centrally on failures by national health service trusts to meet these payments.
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many people (a) received an estimated glomerular filtration rate test for kidney function, (b) were referred to a nephrologist for further investigation and (c) received treatment for chronic kidney disease in the last 12 months for which figures are available; [148847]
(2) how many people received treatment for the management of chronic kidney disease in each year since 2000. [148883]
Ann Keen: This information is not collected centrally and there are no plans to collect data on these specific issues.
The overwhelming majority of people with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are under the care of general practitioners and do not need to be seen by secondary or tertiary hospital services.
At general practice level, the maintenance of a practice register of patients with CKD became a part of the quality and outcomes framework in April 2006, which should mean that a very comprehensive CKD dataset will develop over the next few years.
Data on people newly diagnosed with CKD for the year 2006-07 should be available from September 2007.
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has undertaken of whether the standards and markers of best practice identified in the National Service Framework for Renal Services are being met across England. [148848]
Ann Keen: The Department published The National Service Framework for Renal Services: Second Progress Report in May 2007, and this sets out its up to date view on the implementation of the National Service Framework for Renal Services.
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people received renal replacement therapy in each year since 2000; and what estimate his Department has made of the number of people likely to receive renal replacement therapy over the next 10 years. [148878]
Ann Keen: According to the renal registry, actual numbers at 31 December each year were as follows.
England | |
Projected growth in numbers on renal replacement therapy is set out in the National Service Framework for Renal Services. It is predicted that numbers will rise to around 45,000 over the 10 years ending in 2014.
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many people with established renal failure waited longer than six months to be referred for assessment and surgery prior to receiving haemodialysis in each of the last four years for which figures are available; [148881]
(2) how many people with established renal failure waited longer than four months to be referred for assessment and surgery prior to receiving peritoneal dialysis in each of the last four years for which figures are available. [148882]
Ann Keen: There is no specific waiting list for dialysis. Dialysis is often an emergency treatment and patients with no kidney function will die in a matter of weeks if they do not receive dialysis. For patients whose disease has been identified well in advance of end-stage renal failure, dialysis begins at a time that the individual and his or her consultant feel is appropriate. Part 1 of the National Service Framework for Renal Services recommends starting to prepare people for dialysis about a year before it will be needed, as such preparation leads to better outcomes for the patient.
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance is issued to GPs concerning estimated glomerula filtration rate test results for kidney function. [148884]
Ann Keen: The National Service Framework (NSF) for Renal Services recommended that, when kidney function is assessed and monitored, the most sensitive way to detect kidney disease is by use of a formula-based estimation of glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). To support the introduction of eGFR reporting, in 2006 the Department issued an information pack to the national health service. This consists of fact sheets which were sent to all general practitioners practices and pathology laboratories, explaining how to calculate and interpret eGFR, together with a note on frequently asked questions.
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dialysis machines were available for use within the NHS in each year since 2000; and how many were located in (a) hospital renal units, (b) satellite units and (c) at patients' homes. [148885]
Ann Keen: This information is not collected centrally on a regular basis. The Department commissioned the United Kingdom Renal Registry to undertake a one-off UK-wide survey in 2003 which identified (in 2002) 1,313 dialysis stations in hospital units in England, 1,268 in satellite units and 482 in people's homes. The number will almost certainly have grown significantly since.
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people received (a) haemodialysis and (b) peritoneal dialysis in NHS facilities in each year since 2000. [148886]
Ann Keen: Information on the services provided specifically in national health services facilities is not collated centrally, as almost all United Kingdom haemodialysis facilities, whether operated by the NHS itself or the independent sector, are contracted to the NHS.
As at 31 December each year, the numbers of patients receiving NHS services for renal dialysis in England, whether in NHS or independent sector settings, were as follows:
Haemodialysis | Peritoneal Dialysis | |
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) maternities and (b) full-time equivalent midwives there were in England in each year since 1997; how many full-time equivalent midwives per 1,000 maternities there were in each year; and what definition his Department uses of maternity. [147533]
Ann Keen: The number of maternities is collected by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) through birth registration, and published in FM1, Birth Statistics.
Number of maternities | |
The latest data available for the number of maternities in England are for 2005. Provisional data for 2006 show that there were 669,531 live births in England. The number of births is not the number of maternities, due to multiple births and still births.
The number of full-time equivalent (FTE) midwives is collected by the Information Centre (previously collected by the Department) in the Non-Medical Workforce Census, an annual snapshot census on 30 September.
FTE midwives | |
The latest available data are for 2006.
The previous data can be used to calculate the number of FTE midwives per 1,000 maternities:
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what plans he has to improve the online application service for European health insurance cards; [148988]
(2) how many complaints his Department has received about the online application procedure for the European health insurance card in the last 12 months; [148989]
(3) what mechanism his Department has for monitoring the performance of the online application service for the European health insurance card. [148990]
Dawn Primarolo: The Department receives a lot of correspondence (this includes phone calls, letters and e-mails) relating to the European health insurance card (EHIC). This is not broken down into category and we do not therefore have a figure for the number of complaints concerning the online application service. The online application service is very successful with 3.3 million cards being issued between 1 June 2006 and 31 May 2007 using this process (nearly 60 per cent. of all applications). Feedback received is that our normal speed of service is particularly valued.
Performance of the EHIC service is monitored through regular service level agreement meetings with the Business Services Authority (BSA) who administer the scheme. Feedback is regularly reviewed by both the Department and the BSA and improvements to the service including the online application service are made as required.
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to provide job opportunities in the NHS for new midwives on graduation. [147380]
Ann Keen: The social partnership forum action plan for maximising employment opportunities for newly qualified healthcare professionals in a changing national health service was launched on 13 April. It sets out recommendations between employers, trade unions and the education sector, to put in place positive steps to maximise the employment opportunities for healthcare graduates, including midwives.
NHS Employers is responsible for monitoring progress against each of the action plan recommendations and will provide a report to the monthly meetings of the social partnership forum steering group.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 19 June 2007, Official Report, column 1637W, on NHS treatment centres: standards, what the evidential basis is for the statement that NHS walk-in centres contribute significantly to improving access to services for many people. [148644]
Mr. Bradshaw: An estimated 3 million people every year are seen and treated at national health service walk-in centres in England. The centres are treating patients who would otherwise be using other NHS services.
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