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2 Jun 2009 : Column 399W—continued
NHS Redress Scheme
Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what recent progress has been made on the implementation of the NHS Redress Act 2006; [277214]
(2) whether consultation has begun on details of the NHS Redress Scheme; [277215]
(3) when he plans to bring forward proposals for secondary legislation to introduce the NHS Redress Scheme. [277216]
Ann Keen: The NHS Redress Scheme can only be enacted through secondary legislation, and will require extensive consultation before draft proposals are brought before Parliament. However, the principles behind the scheme are those underpinning the reform of the NHS complaints arrangements that came into effect on 1 April 2009.
The NHS Redress Scheme would apply only to clinical negligence cases of lower monetary value. We consider that focussing on complaints reform will enable those principles to be applied across a wider range of cases.
Once complaints reforms have bedded down, we will begin to consider the implementation of the NHS Redress Scheme.
Once developed, the NHS Redress Scheme will set out the way lower value clinical negligence cases are handled in the national health service to provide appropriate redress, including investigations, explanations, apologies and financial redress where appropriate, without the need to go to court, thereby improving the experience of patients using the NHS.
NHS: Conditions of Employment
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions there have been between his Department and representatives of trades unions and NHS staff on the Transforming Community Services programme. [277660]
Phil Hope:
There were two meetings nationally with the trade union representatives of national health service staff about the Transforming Community Services: Enabling new patterns of provision guidance, which was published in January 2009 a copy of which has already been placed in the Library. These meetings were held on 18 November and 8 December 2008, and comments and contributions from those present influenced significantly the content of the final guidance. The union representatives
were a sub-group of members of the Social Partnership Forum, and they discussed the potential implications for NHS staff. NHS clinical staff and trade union representatives are also members of the Board for the Transforming Community Services programme.
The six transformational practice guides (written principally for clinical team leaders), which are due to be published in June 2009, have also been co-produced with NHS staff.
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures are in place for primary care trusts to consult (a) trades union representatives and (b) NHS staff on the Transforming Community Services programme. [277661]
Phil Hope: The Partnership Agreement ‘An agreement between DH, NHS Employers and NHS Trade Unions’ was published in March 2007. It sets out the principles and benefits of working in partnership on work force implications of policy. A copy has been placed in the Library.
It is expected that strategic health authorities (SHAs) will replicate the broad principles and structures, laid out in the Partnership Agreement, at local level.
In addition, The Handbook to The NHS Constitution for England published, on 21 January 2009, includes a commitment to engage staff in decision that affect them and the services they provide. A copy of this has already been placed in the Library.
Further, ‘Transforming Community Services Enabling New Patterns of Provision’, published in January 2009 (a copy of which has been placed in the Library), requires primary care trust boards to consult their staff and their representatives, as well as other key stakeholders, from an early stage on organisational options for the future of community services and to take their views, comments and suggestions into serious consideration. The guidance also highlights the importance of the active engagement by SHAs of regional Social Partnership Forum in reviewing progress and discussing any emerging concerns or significant implementation issues.
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the likely effect on levels of staff retention of the transfer of NHS community services staff to third sector providers as part of the Transforming Community Services programme. [277664]
Phil Hope: There has been no assessment made centrally of the likely effect on levels of staff retention of the transfer of NHS community services staff to third sector providers as part of the Transforming Community Services programme. We have been clear, however, in guidance to primary care trusts (PCTs) that we expect PCT boards to consult at any early stage on such proposals and/or requests from staff under the ‘Right to Request’ scheme, and to ensure that any implications for the future community work force, such as recruitment and retention, are considered.
NHS: Pay
Mr. Stephen O'Brien:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to Table 71a of the Public Expenditure on Health and Personal Social Services
2008 on the salaries and wages of non-NHS staff, what jobs are classified as other. [277108]
Ann Keen: The following non-NHS staff are classed as other table 71a of the Public Expenditure on Health and Personal Social Services 2008—any qualified scientific, therapeutic and technical staff (allied health professionals and other qualified scientific, therapeutic and technical staff); any support to clinical staff (support to doctors and nursing staff, and support to scientific, therapeutic and technical staff); any national health service infrastructure support (central functions, hotel, property and estates, and managers and senior managers); and any other non-medical staff.
NHS: Working Hours
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the most recent state of readiness return relating to the European Working Time Directive from each NHS trust. [277041]
Ann Keen: We will not be laying documentation in the Library at this time because the information is being validated and changing rapidly as we move towards the deadline of 1 August. Information about the state of readiness relating to the European Working Time Directive continues to be analysed and will be published in due course.
Palliative Care
John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish a report on progress on implementation of the 2005 national service framework for long-term conditions. [277385]
Ann Keen: There are no plans to publish a report on implementation of the national service framework (NSF) for long-term conditions. The NSF was published in March 2005, and will be implemented over 10 years with flexibility for local health and social care communities to take account of local priorities and needs.
The Department has provided service planners, commissioners and providers with guidance, expert advice and support to help them to deliver the NSF's quality requirements. However, in line with devolving responsibility to local organisations, we are moving to new phase with much greater emphasis on local health and social care communities and the third sector taking responsibility for driving forward service change and improvement. This also recognises that the NSF is not a stand-alone priority but that it needs to be closely aligned and integrated into mainstream NHS and Social Services activity.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the needs of (a) children and (b) adults receiving long-term ventilation (i) in hospital, (ii) in their own homes, (iii) in residential care and (iv) elsewhere. [277480]
Phil Hope:
It is for local clinicians and multi-disciplinary teams to assess the needs of people receiving long-term ventilation. The Department of Health, with Barnardo’s,
published “From Hospital to Home: guidance on discharge management and community support for children using long-term ventilation” in 2005. A copy has been placed in the Library. The forthcoming national strategy for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease will include material on access to invasive and non-invasive ventilation.
Patients: Suicide
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of patients who committed suicide unassisted in each NHS hospital in each of the last 10 years. [277194]
Phil Hope: The information is not available centrally in the format requested. However, data held on in-patient suicides in England between 1997 and 2005 are in the following table:
| In-patient suicides, England 1997 to 2005 | |
| Number | |
Prescriptions: ICT
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) when he expects Release 2 of the Electronic Prescription Service to be implemented; and if he will make a statement; [277078]
(2) how many (a) GP and (b) pharmacy information systems he plans to accredit for use with the Electronic Prescription Service in the next 12 months. [277079]
Phil Hope: All pharmacy and general practitioner (GP) system suppliers have to follow a rigorous assurance process prior to being given authority from Connecting for Health to nationally deploy their Release 2 services. This is made up of a number of key stages including clinical safety testing and initial implementation in a limited number of GP and pharmacy sites.
Currently, one GP system and one pharmacy system are completing the final stages of clinical safety testing prior to deploying to the first GP and pharmacy sites. The exact start date of initial implementation is dependant on how quickly these systems progress through the final stages of testing. Based on current supplier plans, it is hoped that initial implementation will begin in the summer. The outcomes of the initial implementation stage will be used to finalise plans for wider rollout of Release 2 across the country.
System suppliers are responsible for providing information on when they expect their systems to be available. Based on recent supplier plans, seven pharmacy and six GP systems are expected to complete the assurance process in the next 12 months.
Social Services: Train to Gain Programme
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken under the Social Care Workforce Strategy to promote the Train to Gain initiative to social care providers in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [277083]
Phil Hope: We are very keen that Train to Gain is utilised and promoted to the social care sector as it has benefited the adult social care sector significantly. There has been a marked increase in those completing training and academic awards over the last three years with nearly 25,000 social care employees achieving a new qualification through Train to Gain.
We are doing more to support employers’ access to Train to Gain funding by providing a brokerage service via Skills for Care to mediate between Train to Gain, employers and individuals in the sector. This brokerage role is key to enabling increased access to funding.
Weather
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many copies of the Heatwave Plan for England 2009 have been produced; and what the cost of production, printing and distribution of the document was. [277707]
Dawn Primarolo: The Heatwave Plan itself is a web-based document only. It is distributed via the Department's website, so no hard copies are produced.
Three additional documents complement the Heatwave Plan itself, to form a package of Heatwave Plan documents. These documents are two factsheets and a public information leaflet:
Factsheet: Supporting vulnerable people before and during a heatwave—advice for health and social care professionals (which like the plan itself is web-based);
Factsheet: Supporting vulnerable people before and during a heatwave—advice for care home managers and staff (which like the plan itself is web-based); and
Leaflet: A guide to looking after yourself and others during hot weather (distributed in hard-copy via GP surgeries, pharmacies and other local outlets).
To date, 900,000 of the leaflet have been printed for 2009.
To date, the cost of producing and distributing the 2009 package of Heatwave Plan documents is £79,504.79, made up of the cost of revising the three web-based documents and enabling them to be downloaded from the Department's website, and the printing and posting costs of the leaflet.
Defence
Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the armed services of each (a) sex, (b) age, (c) regiment and (d) service stationed in Afghanistan were (i) killed, (ii) seriously injured and (iii) otherwise injured in each year since 2001. [276999]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Since Operations began in Afghanistan in 2001, 159 UK Service personnel have died while on deployment, or as a result of injuries sustained in Afghanistan. The figures presented for fatalities are correct as at 19 May 2009. Of the 159 Service personnel who have died, information for four soldiers has not been publicly released and therefore their detailed information has been excluded from the following tables.
Since Operations began in Afghanistan in 2001, one female member of UK Service personnel has died while on deployment, or as a result of injuries in Afghanistan.
The following table provides a breakdown of fatalities by age-group and year:
| Age group | All | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009( 1) |
| (1) As at 19 May | ||||||||||
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