Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report Antibiotic underdosing and disposal in NHS organisations across Great Britain, published in November 2023; and what discussions they have had with the Care Quality Commission on integrating line flushing policies and practices into the assessment framework for care provided in England.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Officials are aware of, and have considered, the findings of the report Antibiotic underdosing and disposal in NHS organisations across Great Britain. Officials from the Department have not had any recent discussions with the Care Quality Commission on integrating line flushing policies and practices into the assessment framework for care provided in England.
General guidance on prescribing and the use of medicines is published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in an online-only format. Good clinical practice is to flush an intravenous line with saline after a medicine has been administered, to ensure the full dose is delivered to the patient. This is not unique to antibiotics.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made towards the new regulatory system for health and care professionals; and which protected professional titles they are considering in scope of these regulations.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Anaesthesia Associates and Physician Associates Order 2024 was made on 13 March 2024 which will bring anaesthesia associates and physician associates into regulation by the General Medical Council under a reformed regulatory framework. We are currently working on the next phase of reform, which will introduce a new regulatory framework for medical practitioners and the professions regulated by the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the Health and Care Professions Council.
As part of the Government’s regulatory reform programme, protected titles will be considered more broadly, as we take forward legislation for each regulator.