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5 Dec 2007 : Column 1320W—continued
As the Prime Minister made clear, deep cleaning will occur in all hospitals, starting this winter, with resources allocated through the strategic health authorities (SHAs). All trusts will submit costed deep clean plans to their lead commissioners who will monitor performance against this plan, as per normal performance management arrangements, and SHAs will take an overview as to progress across their area. Trusts are aiming to complete all deep cleans by the end of March 2008. SHAs will be expected to report on implementation across their regions to the Department.
Milton Keynes Hospital Trust: Cleaning Services
Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether Milton Keynes Hospital Trust has submitted its deep cleaning plan to the strategic health authority; [165248]
(2) what the estimated cost of the Milton Keynes deep cleaning plan is; [165249]
(3) whether the cost of the deep clean for Milton Keynes hospital will come out of the hospital's existing budget. [165250]
Ann Keen [holding answer 19 November 2007]: As the Prime Minister made clear, deep cleaning will occur in all hospitals, starting this winter, with resources allocated through the strategic health authorities (SHAs). All trusts will submit costed deep clean plans to their lead commissioners who will monitor performance against this plan, as per normal performance management arrangements, and SHAs will take an overview as to progress across their area. Trusts are aiming to complete all deep cleans by the end of March 2008. SHAs will be expected to report on implementation across their regions to the Department.
NHS: Finance
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps his Department has taken to assist NHS trusts that were identified as financially challenged in 2006-07; [162860]
(2) what assessment his Department has made of the reasons for which the 17 trusts that were identified as financially challenged in 2006-07 found themselves in this position. [162861]
Mr. Bradshaw: As a result of the Department introducing the new loans system in 2006-07, there were originally 18 national health service trusts, where the financial challenges are such that the Department either could not give a loan because the trusts could not afford to meet the repayments, or where a loan was agreed, but the amount is very large and could only be repaid over a very extended timescale.
Cash support in the form of public dividend capital (PDC) was provided to 13 NHS trusts over the 2006-07 year end, pending the outcome of a review process in 2007-08. This process will set out the long term financing arrangements for these NHS trusts while maximising the level of cash support repaid to the Department.
The 13 NHS trusts, and details of the amount of PDC that each received, are in the following table.
| Trust name | Value of PDC received (£000) |
| (1) Good Hope Hospital NHS Trust subsequently merged with Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust | |
The five NHS trusts, and details of the loan each received, are in the following table.
| Trust name | Value of loan received (£000) |
Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the estimated NHS underspend is likely to be in 2007-08; and if he will make it his policy not to transfer funds from parts of the NHS in budget surplus to other parts as a means of addressing this underspend. [171673]
Mr. Bradshaw: The latest available financial data for 2007-08, based on the quarter 2 forecast outturn position, shows that the national health service as a whole is forecasting a year end surplus of £1,789 million. Details for each NHS organisation were included in the “Quarter 2 Finance Report”, and a copy is available in the Library.
In recent years, the Department has improved the NHS financial regime by introducing a fairer, more transparent, rules-based system, which has included putting an end to the practice of moving money around the NHS, and abolishing both brokerage and planned support.
NHS: Personal Records
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health who is able to gain access to the NHS medical records of individuals; what procedures are involved in accessing those records; and how his Department monitors access. [169000]
Mr. Bradshaw [holding answer 28 November 2007]: Local national health service organisations have the responsibility for determining which of their staff may access the detailed care records they hold, and for establishing the working practices that effectively deliver the confidentiality required ethically, and by law. Guidance on required practice for those who work within or under contract to NHS organisations about the safeguarding of confidentiality, and patients’ consent to the use of their health records, exists in the form of the “NHS Confidentiality Code of Practice”, published in November 2003. Local organisations are and have been responsible for the procedures that are followed, which differ from organisation to organisation and also according to whether the record concerned is held electronically or on paper.
The security measures controlling access to electronic medical records held on the NHS Care Records Service are set at the Cabinet Office standard e-Government interoperability framework level 3, with access further restricted to only those with a legitimate relationship with the patient, and further role-based access restrictions to specific information.
Tools are provided by NHS Connecting for Health to enable organisations to control access to records held in the new information technology systems and services deployed under the national programme for information technology. To access patient records staff will need to:
have been issued with a smartcard following rigorous identity checks;
log on to a system with their card and pass code;
have been assigned a role profile that permits them to use system functions that allow record access and;
have their membership of a team involved in a patient’s care confirmed by a check against central records or
have special authorisation to satisfy statutory requirements or other exceptional reasons for accessing records.
System audit trails will enable organisations to monitor access and the Department has made it clear that misuse must not be tolerated. The Department will monitor how well NHS organisations adhere to standards rather than the details of access.
North Staffordshire University Hospital: Pay
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to ensure that University Hospital Birmingham Foundation Trust makes full and accurate payments to staff at the North Staffordshire University Hospital in line with their entitlement to remuneration for hours worked and pay award, within the timescale specified in their contracts. [171189]
Mr. Bradshaw [holding answer 4 December 2007]: This is a matter for the chair of University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust. I have written to Sir Albert Bore informing him of the hon. Member’s inquiry. He will reply shortly and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.
Obesity: Pregnancy
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the impact of growing levels of obesity on pregnancy and childbirth. [163278]
Dawn Primarolo: Two recent Government reports, Foresight ‘Tackling Obesities: Future Choices’ published in October 2007; and the National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence ‘Guidance on the prevention, identification, assessment and management of overweight and obesity in adults and children’ published in December 2006 have made evidence-based assessments of the importance of key life stages in preventing obesity, including pre-pregnancy and pregnancy.
The most recent triennial report ‘Saving Mothers Lives’, published by CEMACH on 4 December found maternity obesity is a growing risk factor for maternal death and more than half of the women who died were either overweight or obese and more than 15 per cent. were extremely obese.
The Government are developing a comprehensive cross-Government strategy on obesity.
Out-patients: Nutrition
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the level of pre-hospital admission nutritional support offered by the NHS to those patients with a clinical need. [170056]
Dawn Primarolo: No assessment has been made by the Department on the level of pre-hospital nutritional support offered by the national health service to patients with a clinical need. This is a decision made by those providing health care services based on individual circumstances and needs.
Peterborough District Hospital: Cleaning Services
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when (a) Peterborough District Hospital and (b) Edith Cavell Hospital can expect to receive their deep cleans; and if he will make a statement. [168808]
Ann Keen
[holding answer 28 November 2007]: As the Prime Minister made clear, deep cleaning will occur in all hospitals, starting this winter, with resources allocated through the strategic health authorities (SHAs). All trusts will submit costed deep clean plans to their
lead commissioners who will monitor performance against this plan, as per normal performance management arrangements, and SHAs will take an overview as to progress across their area. Trusts are aiming to complete all deep cleans by the end of March 2008. SHAs will be expected to report on implementation across their regions to the Department.
Prescriptions
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 14 November 2007, Official Report, column 289WA, on nurses: prescriptions, how many prescriptions have been issued by (a) nurse independent prescribers, (b) community practitioner nurse prescribers and (c) doctors in each of the past 12 months for which figures are available. [169874]
Dawn Primarolo: The following table shows the number of prescription items issued by nurse independent prescribers, community practitioner nurse prescribers and doctors and dispensed in the community, in England, for the period October 2006 to September 2007.
| Number of prescription items dispensed | |||
| Thousand | |||
| Issued by nurse independent prescribers | Issued by community practitioner nurse prescribers | Issued by doctors | |
| Source: Electronic prescribing analysis and cost tool system. | |||
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