Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the adequacy of the NHS continuing healthcare programme.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department works closely with NHS England, which holds integrated care boards accountable and engages with them to discharge their functions, including via regular and well-established assurance mechanisms.
The Department also engages with the wider sector such as the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman and voluntary organisations representing people with lived experience.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Independent - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of people who have lost their sight due to insufficient staffing levels after presenting at an Accident and Emergency department in each of the last five years.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
This information is not held centrally. We have launched a 10-Year Health Plan to reform the National Health Service. A central and core part of the 10-Year Health Plan will be our workforce, and how we ensure we train and provide the staff, technology, and infrastructure the NHS needs to care of patients when and where they need it.
Action is also being taken to improve the referral, triage, and management of patients between primary and secondary eye care services. This includes looking at how we can deliver more care in the community. These measures aim to free up hospital eye service capacity for those that need specialist input.
Providers regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) are required to ensure that there are enough suitably qualified, competent, skilled, and experienced people to provide safe care and treatment to patients. Where incorrect staffing levels or mix of staff are having an impact on patient outcomes, the CQC can take enforcement action.
Asked by: Josh Babarinde (Liberal Democrat - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment NHS England has made of the potential impact of the Royal Marsden Man Van project on prostate cancer testing in areas with high rates of late diagnosis.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England has not made a specific assessment.
We will find the safest and most effective way to screen for prostate cancer. The Department is investing £16 million into the Prostate Cancer UK led Transform screening trial, which seeks to diagnose prostate cancer as early as possible. This trial will compare the most promising tests that look for prostate cancer in men that do not have symptoms, and aims to address disparities in early detection rates across different groups.
NHS England has funded 10 clinical audits, which includes audit work on prostate cancer. Using routine data, collected on patients diagnosed with cancer in a National Health Service setting, the audit will look at what is being done well, where it’s being done well, and what needs to be done better. This will seek to reduce unwarranted variation in treatment and reduce inequalities across different groups.
Asked by: Julia Buckley (Labour - Shrewsbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to raise public awareness of the potential health risks of open (a) coal and (b) wood fires for cooking and heating in the home.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises the importance of raising awareness of air pollution and the associated health impacts. The Department of Health and Social Care is supporting the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on their comprehensive Clean Air Strategy, which will include consideration of interventions to reduce emissions so that everyone’s exposure to air pollution is reduced. In addition, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is undertaking a review of how we communicate air quality information to ensure members of the public, and vulnerable groups in particular, have what they need to protect themselves. The Government will also continue to raise awareness about the impact of domestic solid fuel burning.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what treatments are (a) available and (b) due to become available in the next 12 months on the NHS for people who have experienced adverse side effects to Covid-19 vaccines.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In the very rare event where an individual may have suffered a severe adverse reaction to a COVID-19 vaccine, care and treatment will be best met and managed by National Health Service local specialist services, augmented as appropriate by national specialist advice. Individuals will be treated and managed through existing healthcare services, with any treatment dependent on the individuals’ clinical needs.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of testing newborn babies for spinal muscular atrophy.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Work is already underway to assess the potential merits of testing newborn babies for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).
This is following the UK National Screening Committee’s two-fold recommendation in 2023, to simultaneously develop a new cost-effectiveness screening modelling study for the United Kingdom’s screening context, and to start scoping work for an in-service evaluation of newborn screening for SMA in real world National Health Services in the UK.
Nov. 24 2024
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