Asked by: Gillian Keegan (Conservative - Chichester)
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 level of misdiagnosis by NHS employees and locums in hospital pathology departments.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
We do not routinely collect this information and we have not made an estimate.
Whilst the vast majority of patients receive safe and effective care, any incident of misdiagnosis can have a significant impact on patients and their families, which is why have we are committed to a systematic approach of understanding and learning from avoidable causes of patient harm. Since 2016, the National Health Service has been creating 29 national pathology networks that bring together clinical expertise in regional hubs. This will deliver the highest-quality service for patients and allow the use of cutting-edge technology to increase the speed and accuracy of diagnostics.
Asked by: Gillian Keegan (Conservative - Chichester)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what engagement his Department has had with the eating disorder charity Beats.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
I last met Beat on 7 November 2017.
The Department met Beat early last year to discuss the work they are doing and their ongoing campaigns. The Department recognises the importance of the work they do in terms of raising awareness of eating disorders.
Asked by: Gillian Keegan (Conservative - Chichester)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the difference in (a) treatments available and (b) waiting times between adult and children's services for patients with eating disorders.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
Recommended treatments for eating disorders are set out in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guideline, ‘Eating disorders: recognition and treatment’. The guideline makes it clear where there are particular treatments or considerations for children and young people. It is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/NG69
To find out more about the treatment available for children and young people, Health Education England has commissioned NHS Benchmarking to collect data on the provision, workforce capacity and skills, and activity of services delivering mental health care. This collection will provide information on the treatments delivered, including by community eating disorder services.
Data on waiting times from referral to starting treatment for children and young people with an eating disorder are published every quarter at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/cyped-waiting-times/
Data from the last quarter (October-December 2018) shows that 80.7% of urgent cases start treatment within one week and 86.8% of non-urgent cases starts treatment within four weeks.
Asked by: Gillian Keegan (Conservative - Chichester)
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 support young people with eating disorders transferring from children's to adult care services.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
The Eating Disorder pathway (published 2015) provides guidance on supporting transitions between services. Best practice is also outlined in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) clinical guideline for recognition and treatment of eating disorders (2017) and NICE Quality Standards for Eating Disorders (2018).
The NHS Long Term Plan sets out ambitions and additional investment to provide a comprehensive offer for 0 to 25 year olds and improve the community offer for adults with mental health problems, which includes dedicated services for eating disorders. The ambitions aim to improve integration between children and young people’s and adult mental health services to meet the needs of young adults, including those with an eating disorder, and ensure people experience a seamless and continuous treatment pathway.