Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to increase the number of menopause clinics in the West Midlands.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
Menopause clinics are operated by clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and implemented as local services. CCGs have a statutory responsibility to commission healthcare services that meet the needs of their whole population, including the provision of menopause clinics.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department has taken to improve the training GPs and other medical professionals receive on the treatment of perimenopausal and menopausal symptoms.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
Each medical school in the England sets its own undergraduate curriculum which must meet the standards set by the General Medical Council (GMC) in its Outcomes for Graduates. The GMC updated the Outcomes for Graduates in 2018, following extensive engagement and consultation with medical education experts. The GMC would expect that, in fulfilling these standards, newly qualified doctors are able to identify, treat and manage any care needs a person has, including the menopause and perimenopause.
The training curricula for postgraduate trainee doctors is set by the relevant Royal College and must also meet the standards set by the GMC. The perimenopause and menopause are included in the curriculum set by the Royal College of General Practitioners and emphasised in the College’s clinical topic guides, which supplement the curriculum.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to help reduce waiting times for cancer screening and testing in Sutton Coldfield.
Answered by Jo Churchill
In Sutton Coldfield the bowel screening programme has increased colonoscopy capacity and the provider is currently sending invitations at 150% of weekly rates compared with before the pandemic. The cervical screening programme has also increased its invitation rate, with normal service expected to be resumed by May 2021. For breast screening a new mobile screening unit will be available within the next month, allowing an additional 720 women to be screened per month.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many doses of a covid-19 vaccine had been received by people in Sutton Coldfield constituency on the most recent date for which information is available.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
NHS England and NHS Improvement publishes weekly data on vaccination totals, including by constituency, at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/covid-19-vaccinations/
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps hospitals are taking before they discharge covid-19-positive patients into the nursing sector.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
We are working with the Care Quality Commission and the National Health Service to ensure anyone who is likely to be infectious with COVID-19 is discharged to a designated care setting to complete a period of isolation before moving to a care home. These settings must meet a set of agreed standards to provide safe care for COVID-19 positive residents. This is to further support safe and timely discharge and protect care home residents and staff from COVID-19.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve mental health support to reduce levels of suicide in (a) Sutton Coldfield and (b) the West Midlands.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
In January 2019, we published the first Cross-Government Suicide Prevention Workplan. It will see every local authority, mental health trust and prison in the country implementing suicide prevention policies. Every local authority now has a multi-agency suicide prevention plan in place and we are working with local government to assure the effectiveness of those plans.
Coventry and Warwickshire sustainability and transformation partnership (STP), which includes Sutton Coldfield, has received £352,000 in 2018/19, £352,000 in 2019/20 and £185,304 in 2020/21 for suicide prevention.
In 2020/21, Birmingham and Solihull STP received £252,595 for suicide prevention, Black Country and West Birmingham STP received £280,078, Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent STP received £300,000 and Herefordshire and Worcestershire STP received £152,187.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
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 exempting (a) golf clubs, (b) tennis clubs and (c) other outdoor sports facilities from the January 2021 covid-19 lockdown restrictions in England.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
We have introduced national restrictions to reduce social contact to suppress the spread of the virus across England. It is therefore necessary for sports facilities, such as golf clubs, tennis clubs, to close. Whilst these facilities are closed, it remains important for wellbeing to be able to exercise and enjoy outdoor recreation safely, therefore individuals can continue to do this in public outdoor places under the new restrictions.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that everyone on the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation priority list is able to access covid-19 vaccines promptly in Sutton Coldfield constituency.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
Work has taken place to ensure we have the logistical expertise, transport and workforce to roll out a vaccine according to clinical priority, at the speed at which it can be manufactured. The phased vaccination programme, which began on 8 December 2020, will be expanded over the coming weeks and months so that by the end of January, everyone will live within 10 miles of a vaccination centre. In a small number of highly rural areas, the vaccination centre will be a mobile unit.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the availability of covid-19 testing in Sutton Coldfield constituency.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
There are two Regional Test Sites within 15 miles of Sutton Coldfield: Birmingham Airport and Kelvin Way as well as six Local Test Sites: 60 Villa Street, Mountford Lane Car Park, South Parade Car Park, Birmingham University South Gate Car Park, Saltley Wellbeing Centre Car Park and Summerfield Community Sports Centre Car Park. These sites form part of the extending national network, a total of over 500 by the end of October.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the availability of covid-19 testing for health professionals in the West Midlands.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
All National Health Service staff are eligible for priority testing for COVID-19. For NHS staff access to testing is provided through pillar 1 testing and there is capacity within trusts to ensure staff can get tested. A number of tests are reserved for essential workers, including NHS workers, and they can book a visit to a test site, or order a home test kit if they cannot get to a site, through GOV.UK at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/apply-coronavirus-test-essential-workers
Essential workers can order five test kits for themselves and other symptomatic members of their households. However, for households of more than five the 119 contact centre raise on order on their behalf. A list of essential workers and those who are prioritised for COVID-19 tests is available at GOV.UK at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-getting-tested