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6 Jan 2010 : Column 468W—continued
Accidents: Dogs
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people aged (a) under 10, (b) between 10 and 18 and (c) over 18 years of age were admitted to accident and emergency departments in each hospital trust in England under the external cause code of W54 as a result of an attack by a dog in 2008-09. [308843]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The information is not available in the format requested. A table showing a count of the number (admission episodes) admitted to hospital via accident and emergency departments for hospital providers in England, with a cause code of W54 (bitten or struck by dog) has been placed in the Library. This information has been provided by the following age groups: under 10, between 10 and 18 and over 18, for the financial year 2008-09.
Autism
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to consult on his Department's adult autism strategy prior to its publication. [309182]
Phil Hope: From the outset, the development of the autism strategy for adults has been underpinned by the two principles of co-production and inclusivity. The public consultation on the strategy was designed to ensure that people with autistic spectrum condition, their families and carers could identify the barriers to access and their key priorities for change in public services.
The consultation which included regional events, on-line discussion forums and targeted engagement, aimed at hard-to-reach groups, received over 1,000 responses. These responses will set the direction of travel for the autism strategy.
The strategy will continue to benefit from the work of its external reference group comprising service users, family carers and the voluntary sector providers as well as professionals who design, develop and provide services.
There will be a further national consultation on the health and social care guidance, mandated by the legislation, which will accompany the strategy and is scheduled for publication in December 2012. We are equally committed to involving service users, carers and the voluntary sector in the production of the guidance.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the implementation plan for his Department's adult autism strategy will be published at the same time as that strategy. [309183]
Phil Hope: Yes, we will be publishing a delivery plan alongside the strategy.
Autism: Research
Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 10 December 2009, Official Report, column 549W, on autism: health services, if he will commission research from autism spectrum experts into cerebral inhibition soothing behaviours and the compromised capacity of persons who are autistic. [308467]
Phil Hope: The Department has no plans to commission research into cerebral inhibitions soothing behaviours and the compromised capacity of persons who are autistic.
Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the full text of the Statutory Warning Notice issued by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to Basildon and Thurrock Foundation Trust on 20 October 2009; and if he will place in the Library a copy of (a) the trust's letter to CQC on 17 November 2009, (b) the minutes of the formal escalation meeting of 20 November 2009 attended by Monitor and (c) Monitor's letter to the trust of 23 November 2009 and the trust's response of 24 November 2009. [308066]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Care Quality Commission has published a report of its inspection of Basildon and Thurrock Foundation Trust on 8 October 2009, which led to the issue of a statutory warning notice on 20 October 2009. The inspection report includes the findings and recommendations set out in the warning notice. The report was published on 4 November 2009, and can be found on the Commission's website at:
http://2009ratings.cqc.org.uk/findcareservices/informationabouthealthcareservices/overallperformance/searchfororganisation.cfm?faArea1=customWidgets.trustsaftey questions_show_1&cit_id=RDD&question=HCAI
The Care Quality Commission has informed the Department that it did not receive a letter from Basildon and Thurrock Foundation Trust on 17 November 2009. However, the trust did write to Monitor on this date. The chairman of Monitor (the statutory name of which is the Independent Regulator of the NHS foundation
trusts), has provided copies of the letters my hon. Friend requested dated 17 November 2009, 23 November 2009, which serves as a minute of the formal escalation meeting of 20 November and 24 November. Copies have been placed in the Library.
Care Homes: Finance
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to page 110 of the 2009 Pre-Budget Report, (a) what current variations in spend on residential care are; how £250 million of savings will be achieved by reducing such variations; how much of these savings will be achieved in each financial year; and what these savings will be spent on. [308144]
Phil Hope: Our publication, "Use of Resources in Adult Social Care-A Guide for Local Authorities", shows that there are significant variations in the proportion of funding that authorities spend on residential care provision. This runs against our ambitions for a more personalised social care system including greater support for people in their own homes. For example, spend in 2007-08 on residential care for:
older people varied from up to 70 per cent. and as low as 30 per cent. of older peoples' spend;
those adults with learning disability needs varied from below 10 per cent. to over 80 per cent. of learning disability spend; and
those adults with a physical or sensory impairment and those with a mental health need varied from as low as 10 per cent. to over 60 per cent. of spend.
The pre-Budget report announcement that local authorities need to make £250 million efficiency savings by 2012-13 from reducing variations in residential care spend will be achieved by supporting more people to live in their own homes. Through our Care Services Efficiency and Delivery programme, we will continue to support local authorities in helping more people to live in their own homes. Our programme will continue to focus on the way in which local authorities commission services that help people remain in their own homes. These include a strong focus on the use of new technologies, including telecare, a greater focus on prevention and joint working between health and social care and the creation of better housing solutions through more supported living services. This will help to reduce the high current variations in residential care spend.
In the Queen's speech, Government announced a further £420 million to provide free personal care for people with the highest needs to live at home. The free personal care offer is a major part of how we will achieve a reduction in these variations.
The pre-Budget report announcement, that authorities need to make £250 million efficiency savings by 2012-13, did not stipulate how much of these savings will need to be achieved in each financial year. It is therefore down to each local authority in conjunction with local stakeholders to deliver a fair and fiscally sustainable social care system to address these efficiency targets.
These savings will remain with local authorities and can be used to meet the growing pressures on social care budgets due to demographic changes and to support their contribution to providing free personal home care for those with the highest need.
The research used to calculate this figure is in "Use of Resources in Adult Social Care-A Guide for Local Authorities", which was published in October 2009. It is available on the Department's website at:
A copy of the document, showing the graphs and the national variations, has been placed in the Library. This information can also be accessed via the new NHS Information Centre NASCIS website at:
Contraceptives: Health Education
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health at what cost to the public purse his Department's campaign on contraception, launched on 30 November 2009 was developed; what funding his Department plans to provide to support the campaign in the financial years (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12; and by what mechanisms his Department plans to evaluate the effectiveness of that campaign. [309208]
Gillian Merron: Estimated advertising expenditure to date on the 'Contraception. Worth Talking About' campaign is £1,218,000. Estimated advertising costs for further activity planned for February 2010 are approximately £1,513,000. Budgets for 2010-11 and 2011-12 are currently under review and therefore no amounts have yet been allocated to campaign work.
A framework for evaluating the campaign is being developed to measure its effectiveness both to meet long-term objectives (reducing teenage pregnancy rates) and shorter-term changes in attitude and behaviour (which should in turn impact on the longer-term objectives). The evaluation is expected to be based on econometric modelling.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effect on levels of demand for NHS contraceptive services of his Department's campaign on contraception, launched on 30 November 2009; what assessment he has made of the capacity of each primary care trust to fit long-acting reversible contraceptives; and if he will make a statement. [309209]
Gillian Merron: The Department of Health has allocated significant additional funds to primary care trusts (PCTs) to help them to improve access to the full range of contraception in their local areas, as well as providing further additional funds to strategic health authorities to help them to work with PCTs to tackle high rates of teenage conceptions. The Department has assisted PCTs to plan for any changes in demand arising from the 'Contraception. Worth Talking About' campaign.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health through which media his Department's contraception campaign will be delivered; which (a) contraception methods will be publicised and (b) groups will be targeted through each medium; what methodology was used to determine which medium to use in each case; and if he will make a statement. [309210]
Gillian Merron: The "Contraception. Worth Talking About" campaign will be delivered via television, radio, print and digital advertisements, with other print, radio and digital public relation activity. The Department uses a communications planning agency to advise on the media to use to reach our target audiences.
The primary audience for the campaign is women aged 16-25, with secondary audiences being parents and health care professionals. These audiences are targeted in all the media used for the campaign. The primary message of the campaign is to promote an awareness of contraceptive choices and to encourage people, especially young people and their parents, to have a more open discussions about contraception and to talk to a doctor or nurse to determine the best contraceptive for their individual circumstances.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what reports his Department (a) commissioned and (b) produced for the purposes the development of his Department's campaign on contraception, launched on 30 November 2009; and if he will place in the Library a copy of each such report; if he will place in the Library a copy of the research which shows there is a lack of knowledge and misinformation, which hinders safer sexual behaviour, referred to in his Department's press release of 30 November 2009; and what the (i) title and (ii) target group is in respect of each phase of his Department's campaign. [309216]
Gillian Merron: The "Contraception. Worth Talking About" campaign was informed by a review of sexual health marketing and communications which produced a report-"Teenage Pregnancy and Sexual Health Marketing". The Department also commissioned qualitative research on women's knowledge and perception of contraception. A copy has been placed in the Library.
The Department's press release of 30 November referred to data gathered from a polling exercise undertaken between 16 and 20 October, and a copy of the results of this work has been placed in the Library.
"Contraception. Worth talking About" is aimed primarily at women aged 16 to 25. The first burst of activity took place between 30 November and 21 December 2009, and a second burst will take place in February/March 2010. "Chlamydia. Worth Talking About" is aimed at young people aged 16 to 24, and will launch in January 2010.
Departmental Conferences
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent by his Department and its agencies on conferences they organised which were subsequently cancelled in each of the last three years; and what the title was of each such conference. [308829]
Phil Hope: Costs of conference services are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
All expenditure on conference and banqueting services has to be incurred in accordance with the principles of managing public money and the Treasury handbook on regularity and propriety.
Departmental Public Relations
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what payments the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement has made to the Waterfront Partnership in the last 12 months; for what purpose; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the contract under which such payments have been made. [305166]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement tell us they have had a rolling three-month contract with Freshwater Public Affairs, formerly The Waterfront Partnership, which began in May 2009. Up to and including November 2009, the NHS Institute has paid Freshwater Public Affairs £42,000. This contract sits alongside the NHS Institute's overall contract for communications and public relations support with Freshwater UK.
Given the commercially sensitive nature of the content of the contract, it is not intended to place a full copy of this information in the Library but the NHS Institute is willing to discuss the contract with the hon. Member.
Derriford Hospital: Surgery
Angela Browning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many full minimally invasive oesophagectomies have been carried out at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth in each month from August to December 2009. [308567]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: This information is not collected centrally.
Disabled: Social Security Benefits
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the results of each model (a) prepared and (b) commissioned by his Department on (i) removal of and (ii) changes to attendance allowance and disability living allowance. [308784]
Phil Hope: The Department has commissioned modelling of funding options for care and support from the Personal Social Services Research Unit (PSSRU). This includes consideration of integration of some disability benefits with the care and support system. The methods used in the modelling were published in a technical report on the PSSRU's website in July at:
Interim results from the modelling are not being released at this time for a number of reasons. The interim results were not based upon the latest policy assumptions, reflecting, for example, what people have been telling us in the consultation, and the Prime Minister's announcement on free personal care. We have concluded that to release the interim results could be unhelpful and misleading.
The PSSRU continue to model the funding options for care and support based on revised assumptions. We intend to publish more details of this work this year. In the meantime, the whole methodology of the interim report was published on the PSSRU's website in July. The top-level costs and benefits are in the impact assessment published with the Green Paper and available on the Big Care Debate website.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether changes have been made to the financial assumptions underpinning the Government's financial modelling for a national care service consequent on the announcement of the policy that there will be no cash losers among existing disability benefit recipients. [309118]
Phil Hope: As we said in the Green Paper, "Shaping the Future of Care Together", if we reform disability benefits, anyone receiving an affected benefit at the time of the reform would continue to receive the equivalent level of support and protection.
Our working assumption in the financial modelling has therefore consistently been that nobody would experience a cash loss as a result of the reforms.
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