Asked by: Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)
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 (a) encourage and (b) support people to enter the nursing profession.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
Appropriate staffing levels are an important element of the Care Quality Commission’s registration regime. It is the responsibility of individual National Health Service health and care employers to have staffing arrangements in place that deliver safe and effective care. This includes recruiting the staff needed to support these levels and meet local needs.
As part of the NHS People Plan, NHS Improvement and Health Education England are considering how best to support the NHS in ensuring it has access to the staff it needs across England. This has focused on areas such as retaining nurses already employed; supporting their existing nursing workforce in areas such as flexible working; investing in nursing staff’s Continuous Professional Development; and increasing undergraduate supply through attracting more students to study nursing.
The University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) reported that applicants to study nursing have increased by 4% compared to the same period last year.
NHS England and NHS Improvement working with Health Education England are also delivering a major communication campaign ‘We are the NHS’. The campaign aims to reduce vacancy rates across the NHS, with a focus on the nursing profession. There has been a strong focus on recruitment to courses starting in September 2019. From September 2019, a further campaign has been launched to encourage UCAS applications to the January 15 deadline for nursing courses starting in September 2020.
The NHS Ambassadors scheme encourages people working and/or studying in healthcare to volunteer one hour per year to speak in schools about their roles or participate in careers events and activities.
Through the interim People Plan, during 2019/20 we will focus on increasing applications to undergraduate AHP education, particularly in the shortage professions of therapeutic radiography, podiatry, orthoptics and prosthetics/orthotics, and developing Allied Health Professionals faculties to work with healthcare providers to identify how to expand clinical placement activity.
Our ongoing 25% expansion of medical school places in England will see an additional 1,500 new medical school places for United Kingdom domestic students. The extra places have been distributed in geographic areas where there have been fewer training places per unit population.
Asked by: Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)
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 adequate levels of staffing are maintained throughout the NHS to protect patient safety.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
Appropriate staffing levels are an important element of the Care Quality Commission’s registration regime. It is the responsibility of individual National Health Service health and care employers to have staffing arrangements in place that deliver safe and effective care. This includes recruiting the staff needed to support these levels and meet local needs.
As part of the NHS People Plan, NHS Improvement and Health Education England are considering how best to support the NHS in ensuring it has access to the staff it needs across England. This has focused on areas such as retaining nurses already employed; supporting their existing nursing workforce in areas such as flexible working; investing in nursing staff’s Continuous Professional Development; and increasing undergraduate supply through attracting more students to study nursing.
The University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) reported that applicants to study nursing have increased by 4% compared to the same period last year.
NHS England and NHS Improvement working with Health Education England are also delivering a major communication campaign ‘We are the NHS’. The campaign aims to reduce vacancy rates across the NHS, with a focus on the nursing profession. There has been a strong focus on recruitment to courses starting in September 2019. From September 2019, a further campaign has been launched to encourage UCAS applications to the January 15 deadline for nursing courses starting in September 2020.
The NHS Ambassadors scheme encourages people working and/or studying in healthcare to volunteer one hour per year to speak in schools about their roles or participate in careers events and activities.
Through the interim People Plan, during 2019/20 we will focus on increasing applications to undergraduate AHP education, particularly in the shortage professions of therapeutic radiography, podiatry, orthoptics and prosthetics/orthotics, and developing Allied Health Professionals faculties to work with healthcare providers to identify how to expand clinical placement activity.
Our ongoing 25% expansion of medical school places in England will see an additional 1,500 new medical school places for United Kingdom domestic students. The extra places have been distributed in geographic areas where there have been fewer training places per unit population.
Asked by: Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)
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 attract more people to work in the NHS.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
Appropriate staffing levels are an important element of the Care Quality Commission’s registration regime. It is the responsibility of individual National Health Service health and care employers to have staffing arrangements in place that deliver safe and effective care. This includes recruiting the staff needed to support these levels and meet local needs.
As part of the NHS People Plan, NHS Improvement and Health Education England are considering how best to support the NHS in ensuring it has access to the staff it needs across England. This has focused on areas such as retaining nurses already employed; supporting their existing nursing workforce in areas such as flexible working; investing in nursing staff’s Continuous Professional Development; and increasing undergraduate supply through attracting more students to study nursing.
The University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) reported that applicants to study nursing have increased by 4% compared to the same period last year.
NHS England and NHS Improvement working with Health Education England are also delivering a major communication campaign ‘We are the NHS’. The campaign aims to reduce vacancy rates across the NHS, with a focus on the nursing profession. There has been a strong focus on recruitment to courses starting in September 2019. From September 2019, a further campaign has been launched to encourage UCAS applications to the January 15 deadline for nursing courses starting in September 2020.
The NHS Ambassadors scheme encourages people working and/or studying in healthcare to volunteer one hour per year to speak in schools about their roles or participate in careers events and activities.
Through the interim People Plan, during 2019/20 we will focus on increasing applications to undergraduate AHP education, particularly in the shortage professions of therapeutic radiography, podiatry, orthoptics and prosthetics/orthotics, and developing Allied Health Professionals faculties to work with healthcare providers to identify how to expand clinical placement activity.
Our ongoing 25% expansion of medical school places in England will see an additional 1,500 new medical school places for United Kingdom domestic students. The extra places have been distributed in geographic areas where there have been fewer training places per unit population.
Asked by: Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of patients readmitted to hospital were diagnosed with malnutrition in the last 12 months.
Answered by Jo Churchill
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NHS England’s Commissioning Excellent Nutrition and Hydration 2015-2018 guidance, published on 8 October 2015, what progress he has made on the commissioning of a workforce to reduce the burden of malnutrition and dehydration through (a) identification, (b) prevention and (c) intervention.
Answered by Jo Churchill
Between November 2017 and March 2019, the NHS England Nursing Directorate delivered two nutrition improvement collaboratives which supported 50 National Health Service provider organisation to deliver improvements in the provision of nutritional care. The overall aims were to:
- Increase the proportion of patients with an accurate nutritional screen;
- Increase the proportion of patients receiving appropriate nutritional interventions; and
- Introduce or increase the use of quality improvement tools and techniques.
The organisations involved in the collaboratives had multi-professional teams including nurses, Allied Health Professionals and caterers. A range of interventions were introduced by the organisations to support improvements including education, training of staff, reviewing availability of equipment to support nutritional screening and assessment. Governance structures were implemented to enable reporting of nutritional care to the trust board. To further build on this a Nutrition Quality Improvement Toolkit is also being developed.
Asked by: Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many patients readmitted to hospital within (a) zero to seven and (b) eight to 180 days were recorded as suffering malnutrition as a (i) primary or (ii) secondary condition (a) in each of the last 10 years and (b) in the last 12 months.
Answered by Jo Churchill
NHS Digital has advised that data for the last 10 years can only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the answer of 6 August 2019 to Question 280423, what is the remit of the review of national standards for healthcare food for patients staff and visitors started by the Healthcare Food Standards and Strategy Group in July 2018; when the review is intended to be completed; and whether the findings of the review will be publicly available.
Answered by Jo Churchill
The review of national standards for healthcare food for patients, staff and visitors is bringing together relevant food requirements and best practice from the National Health Service. The new standards will reflect Government nutrition advice, as outlined in Public Health England’s (PHE) Eatwell Guide.
The review of national standards for healthcare food is being developed alongside the Hospital Food Review and the new standards are expected to be published early next year.
The Hospital Food Review is being undertaken by a Panel chaired by Philip Shelley, Facilities Manager at Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust. The members of the Panel are:
- Emma Brookes, NHS Improvement;
- Michael Bellas, NHS Improvement;
- Tina Potter, Food Standards Agency;
- Rachel Manners, PHE;
- Martin Steele, NHS Property Services;
- Kerry Trunks, NHS/Ward Sister;
- Craig Smith, Hospital Caterers Association (HCA);
- Gail Walker, HCA/Open Door;
- Balwinder Dhoot, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs;
- Susannah McWilliam, Soil Association;
- Maxine Cartz, British Dietetic Association (BDA);
- Andy Burnham, BDA;
- Jason Yiannikkou, Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); and
- William Vineall, DHSC.
Prue Leith has been appointed as an advisor to the review.
The review will also consult other key stakeholders, including NHS trusts, professional associations, patient representatives and commercial suppliers. Organisations involved in the provision of food to the NHS that will be consulted include:
- Apetito;
- Anglia Crown;
- Tillery Valley;
- Brakes;
- Bidfood; and
- Healthy Food Company.
This is not an exhaustive list and other organisations may be consulted.
The Hospital Food Review is scheduled for completion in January 2020.
Asked by: Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the answer of 6 August 2019 to Question 280423, how the Hospital Food Review, announced on 23 August 2019, if he will take into account findings from the review by the Healthcare Food Standards and Strategy Group into the national standards for healthcare food for patients staff and visitors.
Answered by Jo Churchill
The review of national standards for healthcare food for patients, staff and visitors is bringing together relevant food requirements and best practice from the National Health Service. The new standards will reflect Government nutrition advice, as outlined in Public Health England’s (PHE) Eatwell Guide.
The review of national standards for healthcare food is being developed alongside the Hospital Food Review and the new standards are expected to be published early next year.
The Hospital Food Review is being undertaken by a Panel chaired by Philip Shelley, Facilities Manager at Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust. The members of the Panel are:
- Emma Brookes, NHS Improvement;
- Michael Bellas, NHS Improvement;
- Tina Potter, Food Standards Agency;
- Rachel Manners, PHE;
- Martin Steele, NHS Property Services;
- Kerry Trunks, NHS/Ward Sister;
- Craig Smith, Hospital Caterers Association (HCA);
- Gail Walker, HCA/Open Door;
- Balwinder Dhoot, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs;
- Susannah McWilliam, Soil Association;
- Maxine Cartz, British Dietetic Association (BDA);
- Andy Burnham, BDA;
- Jason Yiannikkou, Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); and
- William Vineall, DHSC.
Prue Leith has been appointed as an advisor to the review.
The review will also consult other key stakeholders, including NHS trusts, professional associations, patient representatives and commercial suppliers. Organisations involved in the provision of food to the NHS that will be consulted include:
- Apetito;
- Anglia Crown;
- Tillery Valley;
- Brakes;
- Bidfood; and
- Healthy Food Company.
This is not an exhaustive list and other organisations may be consulted.
The Hospital Food Review is scheduled for completion in January 2020.
Asked by: Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will list the members of the task group undertaking the Hospital Food Review launched in August 2019.
Answered by Jo Churchill
The review of national standards for healthcare food for patients, staff and visitors is bringing together relevant food requirements and best practice from the National Health Service. The new standards will reflect Government nutrition advice, as outlined in Public Health England’s (PHE) Eatwell Guide.
The review of national standards for healthcare food is being developed alongside the Hospital Food Review and the new standards are expected to be published early next year.
The Hospital Food Review is being undertaken by a Panel chaired by Philip Shelley, Facilities Manager at Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust. The members of the Panel are:
- Emma Brookes, NHS Improvement;
- Michael Bellas, NHS Improvement;
- Tina Potter, Food Standards Agency;
- Rachel Manners, PHE;
- Martin Steele, NHS Property Services;
- Kerry Trunks, NHS/Ward Sister;
- Craig Smith, Hospital Caterers Association (HCA);
- Gail Walker, HCA/Open Door;
- Balwinder Dhoot, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs;
- Susannah McWilliam, Soil Association;
- Maxine Cartz, British Dietetic Association (BDA);
- Andy Burnham, BDA;
- Jason Yiannikkou, Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); and
- William Vineall, DHSC.
Prue Leith has been appointed as an advisor to the review.
The review will also consult other key stakeholders, including NHS trusts, professional associations, patient representatives and commercial suppliers. Organisations involved in the provision of food to the NHS that will be consulted include:
- Apetito;
- Anglia Crown;
- Tillery Valley;
- Brakes;
- Bidfood; and
- Healthy Food Company.
This is not an exhaustive list and other organisations may be consulted.
The Hospital Food Review is scheduled for completion in January 2020.
Asked by: Eleanor Smith (Labour - Wolverhampton South West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish the intended timescale for the Hospital Food Review announced on 23 August 2019; and what organisations outside the NHS involved in the provision of food including medical foods will be consulted in the review.
Answered by Jo Churchill
The review of national standards for healthcare food for patients, staff and visitors is bringing together relevant food requirements and best practice from the National Health Service. The new standards will reflect Government nutrition advice, as outlined in Public Health England’s (PHE) Eatwell Guide.
The review of national standards for healthcare food is being developed alongside the Hospital Food Review and the new standards are expected to be published early next year.
The Hospital Food Review is being undertaken by a Panel chaired by Philip Shelley, Facilities Manager at Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust. The members of the Panel are:
- Emma Brookes, NHS Improvement;
- Michael Bellas, NHS Improvement;
- Tina Potter, Food Standards Agency;
- Rachel Manners, PHE;
- Martin Steele, NHS Property Services;
- Kerry Trunks, NHS/Ward Sister;
- Craig Smith, Hospital Caterers Association (HCA);
- Gail Walker, HCA/Open Door;
- Balwinder Dhoot, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs;
- Susannah McWilliam, Soil Association;
- Maxine Cartz, British Dietetic Association (BDA);
- Andy Burnham, BDA;
- Jason Yiannikkou, Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); and
- William Vineall, DHSC.
Prue Leith has been appointed as an advisor to the review.
The review will also consult other key stakeholders, including NHS trusts, professional associations, patient representatives and commercial suppliers. Organisations involved in the provision of food to the NHS that will be consulted include:
- Apetito;
- Anglia Crown;
- Tillery Valley;
- Brakes;
- Bidfood; and
- Healthy Food Company.
This is not an exhaustive list and other organisations may be consulted.
The Hospital Food Review is scheduled for completion in January 2020.