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7 Apr 2010 : Column 1444W—continued
Midwives: Shropshire
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many midwives have been employed by Shropshire NHS Trust in each year since 1997. [325405]
Ann Keen: The information is not available in the format requested. The number of registered midwives employed by the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust in each year since 1997 has been set out in the following table:
| NHS hospital and community health services: Registered midwives in the Shrewsbury and Telford H ospitals NHS T rust, as at 30 September each year | |
| Headcount | |
| Notes: 1. Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust was formed in 2003 from a complete merger of Princess Royal Hospital NHS Trust and Royal Shrewsbury Hospitals NHS Trust. Figures from 1997-2003 are an aggregate of these predecessor organisations. 2. Data Quality: The Information Centre for Health and Social care seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data but responsibility for data accuracy lies with the organisations providing the data. Methods are continually being updated to improve data quality where changes impact on figures already published. This is assessed but unless it is significant at national level figures are not changed. Impact at detailed or local level is footnoted in relevant analyses. Source: The Information Centre for health and social care: Non-Medical Workforce Census. | |
Minoxidil
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with Pfizer on its decision to transfer the production of Minoxidil to another plant; and what steps he is taking to ensure that the supply of Minoxidil to NHS patients is maintained during the transfer. [325726]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: None. However, departmental officials have had communication with Pfizer on this matter.
Patients: Death
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the most recent hospital standardised mortality ratio for each NHS hospital trust, ranked from highest to lowest. [325727]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Hospital standardised mortality ratios (HSMRs) for every non-specialist acute national health service trust in England have been published each month on the NHS Choices website at
since April 2009. The hospital comparison features of NHS Choices allows the list to be sorted by a range of elements, including by HSMR banding and the Care Quality Commission's Quality of Care indicator.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to monitor hospital standardised mortality ratios in each NHS hospital trust. [325728]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Hospital standardised mortality ratios (HSMRs) for each acute hospital trust in England are published on the NHS Choices website and are updated regularly. The Care Quality Commission has an ongoing programme of review of HSMRs, alongside a range of other data, such as readmission rates, infection rates and reported incidents, as well as information from inspections, the public and other organisations, as part of its system for the registration of national health service trusts.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanism the Care Quality Commission uses to monitor mortality rates in NHS hospital trusts. [325729]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has looked closely at the mortality rates of every trust in England when assessing its application for registration. The CQC will continue to look at mortality rates as part of ongoing monitoring and compliance of trusts' registration.
The CQC has advised us that it calculates standardised mortality ratios using hospital episode statistics data.
In addition to this, the CQC receives copies of mortality alerts from the Dr. Foster Unit at Imperial College each month.
The CQC has an established surveillance programme of generating and acting upon mortality outlier alerts for specific clinical groups. At the point of receiving an alert, the CQC undertakes a rigorous range of statistical and other analyses and brings together clinical advice and local knowledge to make decisions about the course of action to be taken.
Prescriptions: Shropshire
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people resident in Shropshire have bought a prescription pre-pay certificate in each year since 1997. [325411]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: National Health Service Help with Health Costs (NHS HwHC) do not hold pre-payment certificate information at primary care trust or county level. The information is available at national level for England which has been set out in the following table.
NHS HwHC also do not hold records for the number of pre-payment certificates sold since 1997. Details of certificates issued are retained for seven years. The information available covers April 2003 to February 2010.
| Number of prescription pre-payment certificates issued in England | ||||
| Duration of certificates issued | ||||
| Financial year | Three-month | Four-month | 12-month | Total |
| Notes: 1. 2009-10 only covers 11 months as March 2010 data are not yet available. 2. Between 2004 and June 2007, pre-payment certificates were available to cover a period of four months or 12 months. Since 1 July 2007 the four-month pre-payment certificate has been replaced with certificates covering three months. 3. The summary information used is available only by financial year. Source: Summary of information provided from NHS HwHC prescription pre-payment certificate database. | ||||
Prosthetics: Ex-servicemen
Angela Watkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding is being made available to NHS Artificial Limb and Appliance Centres to meet the extension of provision to veterans of earlier conflicts. [325814]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Funding for prosthetic and orthotic care and services is provided within the NHS budget and allocated through local determination by individual primary care trusts (PCTs). The current operating framework for the national health service requires commissioners to take account of military personnel, their families and veterans when commissioning services in their area. It is for PCTs in partnership with local stakeholders, including practice based commissioners, local government and the public to determine how best to use their funds to meet national and local priorities for improving health and to commission services accordingly. This process provides the means for addressing local needs within the health community including the provision of prosthetic services for former service personnel.
On 24 March 2010, up to £10 million of funding to research concerning the management of disability after acute trauma in a military or civilian context was launched through the National Institute of Health Research, Evaluation, Trials and Studies Coordinating Centre. This includes research for people needing physical or psychological rehabilitation following trauma. Further information about the research funding can be found at:
Social Services: Finance
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanisms are used to (a) apportion the costs of providing care to people with chronic medical conditions causing disability between the NHS and social services and (b) estimate expenditure on such costs in respect of those who assist such people with (i) mobility, (ii) attendance and (iii) other care. [325555]
Phil Hope: Section 75 of the National Health Service Act 2006, provides the legal framework to enable health and social services to integrate health related functions through a number of partnership arrangements. These include the establishment of pooled budgets for specific client groups and partners to a pooled budget are required to agree how costs are apportioned within the partnership, as well as the level of contribution each partner will make.
Information on the health and social care costs for those who assist people with chronic health conditions is not available centrally. The National Carers' Strategy identified the funding that was available within primary care trust (PCT) baselines to improve support for carers. This includes an additional £150 million that would be given to PCTs to provide carer breaks over 2009-10 (£50 million) and 2010-11 (£100 million).
Swine Flu: Shropshire
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people resident in Shropshire have been diagnosed with swine influenza in each of the last 12 months. [325410]
Gillian Merron: Data on the precise number of swine flu cases in a particular area are not available.
However, the Department does have data on the number of antivirals dispensed through the National Pandemic Flu Service (NPFS). Shropshire is covered by two primary care trusts (PCTs), Shropshire county PCT and Telford and Wrekin PCT. Figures for these PCTs show that between 23 July 2009 and 11 February 2010:
7,747 residents in Shropshire County PCT were authorised antivirals; and
6,619 residents in Telford and Wrekin PCT were authorised antivirals.
These figures only refer to antiviral authorisations through the NPFS since its launch on 23 July 2009 and do not include any that may have been authorised via other routes such as general practitioners.
Antivirals distributed prior to this time were distributed through normal primary care routes and by the Health Protection Agency; the data are still being collated.
Cabinet Office
Public Sector: Contracts
Jenny Willott: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many public service contracts were awarded to companies registered outside the UK in each of the last three years; and if she will make a statement. [324311]
Mr. Byrne: I have been asked to reply.
Figures for public contracts reported to OGC above the EU threshold for 2008 indicate that over 95 per cent. were awarded to UK registered companies.
Social Investment Wholesale Bank
Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office with which projects the Government are piloting social impact bonds; and for how long in each case. [325810]
Mr. Byrne: I have been asked to reply.
The Budget announced its support for the first social impact bond (SIB) pilots to help investment in long-term initiatives and support preventative action. The pilots are at different stages of development. The MOJ pilot will aim to reduce reoffending rates in HMP Peterborough and the pilot will last for six years. CLG are working with Leeds city council and NHS Leeds to enable them to use a SIB approach to reduce health and social cares costs among older people. Given this work is at an early stage, the timeframe has not been set. Similarly Bradford metropolitan district council are considering applying this model as part of their involvement in the Government's Total Place programme. Again, no timeframe has yet been set.
Children, Schools and Families
Building Schools for the Future Programme: Leicestershire
Mr. Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families for what reasons Leicestershire county council's bid for funding from Building Schools for the Future was not recommended by Partnerships for Schools in the most recent funding round; and on what date his Department wrote to Leicestershire county council to inform them of these reasons. [325813]
Mr. Coaker: Partnerships for Schools (PfS), as the delivery agent for Building Schools for the Future (BSF), is responsible for discussions with local authorities about applications to join the BSF programme. PfS wrote to Leicestershire county council on 8 March 2010 to provide feedback on why the council would not yet be invited to join.
Local authorities are prioritised on the need for BSF investment but must also demonstrate that they are ready and able, and have all the elements in place to deliver their BSF project. As well as assessing submissions to enter on a case-by-case basis, bids are also compared against each other so that the most ready are selected.
The assessment of Leicestershire's county council, "Readiness to Deliver" submission concluded that further work is needed in some key areas before the authority can be deemed ready to enter BSF.
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