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9 Dec 2009 : Column 466W—continued
Arthritis: Health Services
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking, with reference to the report by the National Audit Office on Services for People with Rheumatoid Arthritis, to work with primary care trusts to promote early treatment of and employment-focused support for people with inflammatory arthritis. [304419]
Ann Keen: The Department has published a good practice commissioning pathway for inflammatory arthritis which supports clinicians in identifying cases of rheumatoid arthritis and ensuring that they are set on the right pathway of care. This describes key symptoms, for example where patients should be referred for urgent treatment.
General practitioners can also use the Map of Medicine to determine the best possible treatment options for their patients, including information on the various patterns of onset, diagnostic tests and medical treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.(1)
The Government response to Dame Carol Black's review of the health of the working age population "Working for a Healthier Tomorrow" introduced a number of policy initiatives aimed at supporting people with health conditions to stay in, return to or move in to work.
For example, Pathways to Work and Condition Management Programme are designed to meet the needs of the three most common causes of long-term sickness: mental health, musculoskeletal and cardio respiratory conditions. Individuals who have inflammatory arthritis and are claiming benefits can volunteer to participate.
The Fit for Work Service Pilots will integrate with existing health and employment-related structures and services, such as Jobcentre Plus and relevant local partnerships, to join up appropriate support for sickness absentees. This will include health-related services such as physiotherapy but will also extend to wider support such as employment, skills, housing and debt advice. As musculoskeletal disorders are one of the most common causes of sickness absence, appropriate support for these will be an integral part of the Fit for Work Service pilots and those with inflammatory arthritis will receive appropriate and timely treatment.
(1) The Map of Medicine is a map of best available research evidence and a best evidence clinical guideline. It displays this knowledge in an easy-to-use pathways format, reflecting the patient journey and provides a framework for creating local pathways.
Blood: Donors
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent on advertising to encourage people to donate blood in each of the last 10 years. [304099]
Gillian Merron: The following table shows funds spent on marketing activities to attract blood donors in England and North Wales between 2001-02 (the earliest date for which complete data are available as before then figures were not collated centrally) and 2008-09. Costs given include media advertising; direct marketing; external marketing services; campaign events; donor awards; promotional items; and public relations activities.
| Cost (£)( 1) | |
| (1 )Figures given relate solely to expenditure by the National Blood Service (part of NHS Blood and Transplant). The promotion of blood donation in South Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland is the responsibility of the separate UK blood services which operate in those areas. (2) Figures for 2007-08 and 2008-09 reflect the cost of promoting both blood and organ donation. In October 2005, the National Blood Service and UK Transplant merged to become one special health authority, NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT). Accounting systems were subsequently amalgamated, and the cost of promoting blood donation is no longer recorded separately. | |
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of people were on the (a) blood donor and (b) bone marrow donor register in each register area in each of the last 10 years. [304103]
Gillian Merron: The following table shows the total number of blood donors recorded in June of the last eight calendar years, broken down by region into the north (incorporating North Wales); south-east; and south-west; and the percentage of blood donors as a proportion of the total population of England. 2001 is the earliest year for which complete data are available, as before then data was not collated centrally.
| Number of blood donors | ||||||
| N orth | S outh W est | S outh E ast | Total blood donors | Population (million, England) | Blood donors-percentage of population | |
The corresponding figures for people on the bone marrow registry is not currently collated centrally. However NHS Blood and Transplant is currently in the process of migrating these data to a central system and a copy of these figures will be placed in the Library.
Bolton Primary Care Trust: Managers
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many senior managers were employed in the Wigan and Bolton Health Authority in the final year of its operation; and how many were employed by Bolton Primary Care Trust at the latest date for which figures are available. [304449]
Ann Keen: The information requested is shown in the following table:
| National health service hospitals and community health services: Senior managers in the Wigan and Bolton Heath Authority and the Bolton Primary Care Trust (PCT) | |
| Senior manager headcount | |
| Note: The Bolton PCT was formed in 2002, bringing together elements of the former Wigan and Bolton Health Authority, the three Bolton Primary Care Groups, and the Community Healthcare Bolton NHS Trust. Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care | |
Bone Marrow Disorders: Donors
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent steps he has taken to increase the number of blood donors who are bone marrow donors; and if he will make a statement. [304102]
Gillian Merron: The National Blood Service (part of NHS Blood and Transplant) currently recruits bone marrow donors from the existing pool of blood donors and therefore efforts to promote bone marrow donation are focused through existing channels of communication with donors. Information on bone marrow donation is available at blood collection sessions, and staff actively promote bone marrow donation particularly to blood donors from black and minority ethnic communities.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the devolved Administrations on increasing the number of bone marrow donors. [304104]
Gillian Merron: NHS Blood and Transplant, as the special health authority with responsibility for ensuring the supply of blood, organs, stem cells and tissues for patients, holds regular meetings with its counterparts from across the UK where all issues on donation and collection are discussed.
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not held any meetings with the devolved Administrations on increasing the number of bone marrow donors.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of patients who received bone marrow and stem cell treatments in the last 12 months were administered cells from (a) UK donors and (b) foreign donors from each country. [304105]
Gillian Merron: This information is not collected.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his most recent estimate is of the unit cost of identifying the tissue type of a bone marrow or stem cell donor by samples taken from (a) a blood donor at the time of donation and (b) a DNA swab. [304185]
Gillian Merron: NHS Blood and Transplant use the following cost estimates for extracting Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) from blood samples and buccal swabs:
(a) Blood samples: £203.97 for 48 test kits fully automated
(b) Buccal swab: £117.60 for 50 test kits manual
One test kit is used for each donor.
Because the kits for buccal swabs are not fully automated, there will be additional costs as the process requires more staff time.
Coeliac Disease
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate he has made of the number of people living with coeliac disease in England; what the evidential basis is for that estimate; and if he will make a statement. [304248]
Ann Keen: We have made no estimate of the number of people living with coeliac disease.
Cord Blood
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of the umbilical cords of babies born alive in each of the last 10 years were donated for the harvesting of stem cells. [304100]
Gillian Merron: The total amount of units of umbilical cord blood processed and stored in the NHS Cord Blood Bank (the Bank) for the last 10 years are:
| Units banked per annum | |
A report commissioned by the Department entitled 'Cord Blood Banking in the UK: An International Comparison of Policy and Practice' estimated that, in 2007, the Bank collection rate represented about 0.13 per cent, of annual total births in the United Kingdom.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many stem cell donations from the NHS Cord Blood Bank were provided to patients in each year since 1996. [304106]
Gillian Merron: The number of cord blood units issued by the NHS Cord Blood Bank for transplant into patients each year since 1998 are:
| Issued | |
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