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12 Mar 2009 : Column 699W—continued
Departmental Correspondence
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many letters to his Department had not been replied to within 28 days of receipt at the latest date for which information is available. [261415]
Mr. Bradshaw: The Department routinely measures its performance in replying to correspondence against a target of 20 working days. Of the 52,232 letters received by the Department between 1 January and 31 December 2008 and logged onto our central correspondence database, 2,074 were not replied to within 20 working days. The Department answered 96 per cent. of letters within 20 working days.
| Number /percentage | |
Diabetes
Mr. Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what access NHS patients with diabetes-related foot ulcers have to dedicated multi-disciplinary team care in each strategic health authority area. [262306]
Ann Keen:
The information requested is not collected centrally. It is important that people with diabetes have access to a multidisciplinary team that includes podiatry
services. The National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE)'s guidelines on the prevention and management of foot problems in people with diabetes advise that foot examinations should be carried out by trained personnel as part of the annual review process.
It is for local national health service organisations to commission a comprehensive service for people with diabetes that includes podiatry services.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the percentage change in diagnosis rates of Type 2 diabetes has been since 1997. [262413]
Ann Keen: The Department does not collect data on the rates of diagnosis for type 2 diabetes. Information on the number of people with diabetes is available from the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF).
Figures for the last 10 years are not available. However, the following table shows the number of people recorded on diabetes registers (including both type 1 and type 2 diabetes) from 2004-05 to 2007-08, from the QOF. It should be noted that patients will only contribute to the figures in QOF if they are registered with a general practice participating in the QOF. QOF data are collected annually and only include people with diabetes aged 17 or over. Figures are not available broken down into type 1 and type 2 diabetes. The latest prevalence data are from June 2008.
| Number of patients with a recorded diagnosis of diabetes | |
Diabetes: Expenditure
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of the NHS budget has been spent on diabetes-related illnesses in each of the last five years. [262412]
Ann Keen: Estimates of national health service expenditure on diabetes are available from the programme budgeting returns.
The following table shows the estimated gross level expenditure for diabetes from 2004-05 to 2006-07 in England. These figures include primary care trust, Department of Health, strategic health authority and special health authority expenditure. It should be noted that these figures do not include prevention expenditure or General Medical Services/Primary Medical Services expenditure. Data for 2007-08 are not yet available.
| Diabetes expenditure (£000) | Department of Health gross expenditure (£000) | Diabetes as a proportion of gross expenditure (percentage) | |
Diabetes: Pupils
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many primary care trusts provide training on diabetes to school staff. [262414]
Ann Keen: This information is not collected centrally.
Diabetes: Syringes
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many health care centres in (a) Leicester City Primary Care Trust and (b) England accept needles which have been used in the management of diabetes; [262410]
(2) what assessment he has made of the current level of provision for the disposal of needles used by diabetics; and if he will make a statement. [262411]
Ann Keen: The Department does not collect data about the number of health care centres that accept used diabetic needles and, therefore, has not made an assessment about the current provision for the disposal of diabetic needles.
Diabetic Care—Sharps Disposal Information Note (August 2004) provides the following guidance to health care professionals and those involved in health care waste management and disposal with regard to the correct and safe disposal of used diabetic needles:
“Those prescribed the Sharpsbin should be advised that, because of the risk of needle-stick injuries, it should not be disposed of via the normal household refuse collection. Patients should correctly dispose of their Sharpsbin by returning it to their GP for appropriate disposal (if so licensed). Alternatively, local authorities will make separate collections of clinical waste on request and patients should contact their local authority.”
A copy of the information note has been placed in the Library.
Drugs: Young People
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many 18 to 21-year-olds were admitted to each (a) hospital and (b) university hospital following drug-related incidents in each of the last 10 years. [260919]
Dawn Primarolo: The information requested has been placed in the Library. It is important to note that the diagnosis codes used to record hospital admission episodes do not distinguish between recreational, illicit misuse or medical use of drugs.
Food: Labelling
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps his Department (a) has taken in the last 12 months and (b) plans to take in the next 12 months to improve the labelling of food; what recent representations he has received on this issue; and if he will make a statement; [263291]
(2) which organisations and individuals the Food Standards Agency (a) consulted in each of the last six months and (b) plans to consult in the next six months on food labelling; and if he will make a statement. [263292]
Dawn Primarolo: Food labelling is the responsibility of the Food Standards Agency, which reports to Parliament through Health Ministers.
The European Commission has published a proposal for new legislation which is currently under negotiation in Brussels. This will update and consolidate general and nutrition labelling and is expected to be adopted in 2013. The Agency consulted on the proposal in February 2008 soon after its publication in February 2008, and will be consulting further in the coming months on specific aspects as they are discussed by member states.
The Agency actively and regularly engages with a wide range of stakeholders and on a range of food labelling issues as required in the development of United Kingdom policy. This includes the formal and informal consultation of over 1,100 individuals on the Agency's interested parties list, consumer groups, manufacturers, retailers, enforcement and other Government Departments.
Health Visitors
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many health visitors there were in each primary care trust in (a) 2005, (b) 2006 and (c) 2007. [263153]
Ann Keen: The number of health visitors in each primary care trust in the years in question is given in a table, which has been placed in the Library.
HIV Infection
Mr. Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what programmes his Department is funding to ensure that people with HIV have the social support they need, with particular reference to access to peer support groups. [263052]
Dawn Primarolo: The Department funds the AIDS support grant to help local authorities to provide social support to people with HIV. This grant has been increased and totals £21.8 million in 2009-10. The Department also funds several voluntary organisations whose work includes peer support for people with HIV in England. These organisations include the Terrence Higgins Trust, the African HIV Policy Network, Positively Women and the National Children's Bureau.
Hospitals: Food
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which retailers have (a) adopted and (b) not adopted the Food Standards Agency's recommended traffic light colour-coded system of nutrition labelling; and if he will make a statement. [263241]
Dawn Primarolo: There are currently eight retailers that have adopted the Food Standards Agency's traffic light signposting system these are: Asda, Booths, Boots, Budgens/Londis, The Cooperative, Marks and Spencer, Sainsbury's and Waitrose.
The Food Standards Agency is aware of the following retailers which have opted to use a different front of pack labelling system: Aldi, Lidl, Morrisons, Netto, Nisa-Today, Somerfield, Spar and Tesco.
Human Papilloma Virus: Hertfordshire
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many girls aged 12 and 13 have been vaccinated against the human papilloma virus in (a) Hemel Hempstead and (b) Hertfordshire. [263065]
Dawn Primarolo: The Department collects data on the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccination programme.
Provisional data at the end of January 2009 for HPV vaccine uptake in the area covered by West Hertfordshire Primary Care Trust (PCT) which includes Hemel Hempstead show that:
a total of 3,141 12 to 13-year-old girls have received the first dose; this represents 81.3 per cent. of the total number of girls in this age group in schools in West Hertfordshire PCT; and
a total of 3,079 12 to 13-year-old girls have received the first and second doses; this represents 79.7 per cent. of the total number of girls in this age group in schools in West Hertfordshire PCT.
Provisional data at the end of January 2009 for HPV vaccine uptake in the area covered by West Hertfordshire PCT and East and North Hertfordshire PCT show that:
a total of 6,103 12 to 13-year-old girls have received the first dose, this represents 82.2 per cent. of the total number of girls in this age group in schools in Hertfordshire; and
a total of 5,963 12 to 13-year-old girls have received the first and second doses, this represents 80.3 per cent. of the total number of girls in this age group in schools in Hertfordshire.
The HPV vaccination is a three-dose schedule and the current cohorts of 12 to 13-year-old girls will be offered their third dose later this year.
HPV vaccine uptake information is published on the website:
The provisional data for all PCTs in England at the end of January 2009 have been placed in the Library.
Injuries: Children
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham of 27 January 2009, Official Report, column 404W, on injuries: children, when the equivalent figures for the year 2007-08 will be available. [262520]
Ann Keen: The information requested was published in the Hospital Episode Statistics in-patient publication on 25 February 2009. The data for finished admission episodes for deliberate and unintended injuries (age 0-15 inclusive) for 2007-08 are in the following table:
| 2007-08 | |
| Number | |
Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation: Standards
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will put in place measures to ensure that members of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation have no direct or indirect financial ties to pharmaceutical companies who provide vaccines. [262165]
Dawn Primarolo: Members of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) are required to observe the ‘Seven Principles of Public Life’ set out by the Committee on Standards in Public Life and must comply with the JCVI code of practice. Members are required by the code to declare relevant interests, including personal and non-personal interests, in any particular matter to be considered by the JCVI. The register of members’ interests is updated regularly. Individual declarations of interest made in 2009 will be published in May 2009 on the website at:
A copy of the JCVI code of practice has been placed in the Library.
Mental Health Services: Sexual Offences
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many incidents of (a) sexual assault and (b) rape on mental health patients in mental health hospitals were recorded in each of the last five years. [262022]
Phil Hope: This information is not collected centrally.
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