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22 July 2008 : Column 1096W—continued
Hospices: Finance
Mr. Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what funding his Department is providing for hospice care within the NHS in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10; [219888]
(2) what funding his Department is providing for hospice care in the voluntary sector in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10. [219889]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: Decisions on funding for end of life care services, including the provision of hospice care in the national health service or voluntary sector, are a matter for local primary care trusts who are responsible for commissioning services to meet the needs of their local population.
The End of Life Care Strategy published on 16 July 2008, sets out a clear direction for delivering and ensuring access to high quality, responsive services across all settings for all adult patients at the end of life irrespective of who or where they are. To support the implementation of the strategy we will be investing an additional £286 million in end of life services in the two years up to 2011. This will include a £40 million capital fund for hospices to improve their facilities in 2010-11.
Hyperactivity
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children were diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in each of the last 10 years, broken down by primary care trust. [217025]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: Information is not collected on the number of people diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In 2006, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published guidance entitled ‘Methylphenidate, atomoxetine and dexamfetamine for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents’ on the use of drugs to treat ADHD. NICE has estimated that around 5 per cent. of school-aged children meet the diagnostic criteria for ADHD, equivalent to 366,000 children and adolescents in England and Wales, but not all these children will require medication.
Maternity Services
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many maternity units there were in the NHS in each of the last five years. [218075]
Ann Keen: We do not routinely collect this information centrally. The Healthcare Commission asked for this information as a one-off exercise and at March 2007, there were 382 maternity units in England.
Medical Equipment
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on the proposed retail model for transforming community equipment services; and if he will make a statement. [219916]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The retail model developed for community equipment met with overall approval from the sector. The outline business case was sufficiently robust to support developing the outline model to operational status. This has been undertaken through a shadow running process in the north-west with local authority and health partners in Cheshire, Manchester and Oldham.
Through shadow running, users and their carers have been able to take an equipment prescription for simple aids to daily living to an accredited retailer and receive in exchange the prescribed equipment. The users own the equipment. They were also able to top up this prescription to a product that better suited their lifestyle and pay the difference to the retailer.
The shadow running process demonstrated improvements in the user experience and efficiency of the service.
Cheshire and Oldham have decided to implement the model locally. This confirms that, in their areas, the new prescription processes have been demonstrated to be effective and are capable of being scaled up to support full implementation of the retail model.
Members: Correspondence
Ian Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when a reply will be sent to the hon. Member for Eccles' correspondence of 4 February and 23 April 2008 on the hepatitis B vaccine. [219867]
Dawn Primarolo: A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 21 July 2008.
Mental Health Services
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 25 June 2008, Official Report, columns 363-4W, on mental health services, what was the (a) revenue and (b) capital expenditure on Tier 5 services for people with personality disorders in each year since 2005. [215691]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The information requested is not held centrally.
However, a Personality Disorder Service, based on the Therapeutic Community Model, was nationally commissioned from three residential centres; Henderson Hospital in London, Main House in Birmingham and Webb House in Crewe, for a time limited period, between 1999 and 2006, while an evaluation was carried out. It was then returned to national health service commissioning in April 2006.
The budget for these three units when they were nationally commissioned was £6.2 million in each of the years 2004-05 and 2005-06.
Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate he has made of the annual cost to the NHS of treating stress-related conditions; [220693]
(2) how many people were diagnosed with stress-related conditions in each of the last 10 years. [220694]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: This information is not collected centrally.
Mental Health Services: Leeds Prison
John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements are being made to provide therapeutic services for prisoners with mental health problems in Leeds prison; and if he will make a statement. [220715]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: Psychological therapies are commissioned by primary care trusts (PCTs). When commissioning these services for prisoners, PCTs will assess the needs of their population and as with all other health provision, consideration will be given as to how services will be delivered to address these needs. This will be determined locally as part of a PCT’s commissioning responsibility.
Mental Health Services: Young Offenders
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the average time between initial assessment by a psychiatrist at (a) Ashfield and (b) Huntercombe young offender institution and transfer to a medium secure hospital for young people funded by a primary care trust. [219240]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: This information is not held centrally.
The “Procedure for the Transfer of Prisoners to and from Hospital under Sections 47 and 48 of the Mental Health Act 1983” was published in December 2007 with contributions from the Department, HM Prison Service and National Commissioning Group. The National Commissioning Group are responsible for commissioning a range of specialist services including the national in-patient Secure Forensic Mental Health Service for Young People, which oversees in-patient treatment and referrals to seven specialist units for under-18s in England.
The “Procedure for the Transfer of Prisoners to and from Hospital under Sections 47 and 48 of the Mental Health Act 1983” aims to help colleagues to work together more effectively to secure and sustain significant improvements in any unacceptable delays transferring patients from custodial care to hospital care and includes a specific section on young people. The procedure states that a child with an acute need for a mental health secure bed should be moved within seven days.
Mental Health Services: Young People
Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many people were awaiting access to a medium secure hospital bed for young people at the latest date for which figures are available; [219224]
(2) how many medium secure hospital beds are available for young people with learning disabilities. [219225]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The information requested is not held centrally.
Mentally Ill: Carers
John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his latest estimate is of the number of carers caring for family members with mental health needs. [218026]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: No such estimate has been made. However, the 2001 census was the first time information on the numbers of carers was available on the basis of a detailed count. The 2001 census indicates that there are some 6 million people providing unpaid care in the United Kingdom. Some of these cared for people will have mental health issues. However, this figure does not necessarily reflect the number of individuals being cared for, as there is not a one to one ratio of carers to care-recipients.
The contribution carers make is recognised in law and the policies of central and local government.
Methadone
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients have been prescribed methadone to help combat drug addiction in (a) England, (b) London, (c) the north-east, (d) the Tees Valley district and (e) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency in each year since 1997. [219857]
Dawn Primarolo: Information on the number of people prescribed a medicine is not collected centrally. However, the number of prescription items prescribed for methadone(1) is shown in the following table. Information is only held for the last 60 months and is based on the national health service organisation that most closely represents the areas requested.
| NHS organisation | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 |
| (1) Methadone is licensed for use in opioid dependence, as an analgesic and as a cough suppressant. The figures provided are for prescriptions written under British National Formulary (BNF) section 4.10—drugs used in substance dependence. (2) North West London Strategic Health Authority (SHA), North Central London SHA, North East London SHA, South East London SHA and South West London SHA merged in 2006 to become NHS London. (3) Part of Middlesbrough Primary Care Trust (PCT) joined with others to form Redcar and Cleveland PCT in 2006. Middlesbrough PCT remained but as a smaller PCT. (4) Langbaurgh PCT merged with part of Middlesbrough PCT and became Redcar and Cleveland PCT in 2006. Source: Prescribing Analysis and Cost Tool (PACT) | ||||
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to ensure that users of methadone who receive the drug on prescription are made aware of the risks associated with allowing children in their care access to the drug. [220095]
Dawn Primarolo: In September 2007 the Department, in collaboration with the National Treatment Agency for substance misuse (NTA) published guidelines for the clinical management of drug treatment services, “Drug Misuse and Dependence: UK Guidelines on Clinical Management”.
The guidelines note that patients prescribed methadone
“must be made fully aware of the risks of their medication and of the importance of protecting children from accidental ingestion. Prescribing arrangements should also aim to reduce risks to children”.
The guideline goes on to note that during assessment clinicians should inform patients of the
“risks to children of ingesting prescribed medication and the importance of safe storage must be emphasised at the first appointment and repeatedly thereafter. Assessment of compliance with these safety measures should form part of the decision-making concerning dispensing and supervision arrangements”
In January 2007, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence published the “Technology Appraisal” “Methadone and buprenorphine for managing opioid dependence”, which recommended the use of both methadone and buprenorphine for the treatment of opioid dependence.
This Appraisal notes the risks that the use of methadone (or buprenorphine) has for non-drug users, especially children who may be at risk of accidental ingestion, and that
“the responsible clinician, in consultation with the person, should estimate the risks and benefits of prescribing methadone or buprenorphine, taking account of the person’s lifestyle and family situation (for example, whether they are considered chaotic and might put children and other opioid-naive individuals living with them at risk)”.
Local clinical governance protocols for drug treatment would normally require recording of any serious incidents concerning the ‘misuse' of prescribed methadone so that appropriate action can be taken to ensure that any risk or harm is minimised and is not repeated.
Earlier this year the NTA launched a consultation on clinical governance in drug treatment, with the aim of publishing guidance later this year. This will help commissioners and service providers shape the local implementation of clinical governance systems in this important area.
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