Asked by: Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative - Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she expects the Anthony Nolan and NHS Blood and Transplant State of the Registry report on stem cells to be published.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom
We expect the report to be published by the end of February 2024.
Asked by: Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative - Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to help tackle racial inequalities in levels of organ transplantation.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom
Generally, patients from ethnic minority backgrounds on the transplant waiting list, wait longer than white patients for a transplant. For example, black patients wait six months longer for a kidney transplant than white patients. The best chance of a match is from an ethnically matched donor. Therefore, NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is focussed on sharing the benefits of transplantation more equally and increasing consent levels for organ donation amongst ethnic minority communities.
NHSBT raises awareness throughout the year, including during Organ Donation Week every September, with targeted social media, and press engagement. It also works with charities, community partners, celebrities, and influencers to amplify the need for donors from ethnic minority backgrounds. Since April 2023, NHSBT has invested £700,000 into 304 initiatives through the Community Grants Programme, targeting South Asian and black heritage communities, to align with clinical need.
NHSBT is looking at systems as well as training and diversifying the network of Specialist Nurses and implementing national organ offering schemes, which play a key role in targeting inequalities. But more progress is needed, and everyone can help by signing up to the Organ Donor Register.
Asked by: Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative - Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the impact of funds dispersed by NHS Blood and Transplant to organisations for the purposes of raising awareness of organ, blood and stem cell donation.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) provides funds to organisations via two routes, the Community Grants Programme and special project grants. Both funds complement and enhance NHSBT’s integrated marketing approach and are focused raising awareness, building trust with specific communities, and overcoming barriers to donation.
Since April 2023, The Community Grants Programme has provided around £700,000 of funding to 50 groups resulting in 304 initiatives, 134 events, 99 social media campaigns and 26 press and radio campaigns. The Community Grants Programme has contributed to increases in new Black heritage blood donors, increasing from 1% of new donors being from Black heritage backgrounds to 6% now. Overall, there was an increase from 31% to 48% of non-donors across ethnic backgrounds saying they would donate blood in July 2023.
Asked by: Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative - Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to review the impact of the Organ Donation (Deemed Consent) Act 2019 on family consent.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
NHS Blood and Transplant’s evaluation of opt-out legislation in England observed a consent rate of 61% which was lower than the predicted post opt-out legislation consent rate of 78%. The study to evaluate the impact of opt-out legislation in England was designed before the COVID-19 pandemic and opt-out legislation in England was implemented on 20 May 2020 during the height of the first COVID-19 lockdown. Deceased donation numbers dropped 25% during the pandemic period and have yet to fully recover. It is acknowledged that, as the legislation coincided with COVID-19, it may never be possible to distinguish the true impact of opt-out legislation due to the impact of COVID-19 on organ donation.
Asked by: Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative - Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she plans to take to improve patient data on ethnicity.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
NHS England’s Operational Planning Guidance for 2023/24 recognises the importance of improving the completeness of data on patient characteristics. This is one of the five strategic priorities in our drive to reduce healthcare inequalities. NHS England has therefore asked systems to continue to improve the collection and recording of ethnicity data across primary care, outpatients, accident and emergency, mental health, community services, and specialised commissioning. To aid this, NHS England is working to develop tools to support collection of ethnicity information in frontline services.
Asked by: Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative - Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will review the (a) terms of reference and (b) governance of the UK Stem Cell strategic forum.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
The terms of reference and governance of the UK Stem Cell Strategic Forum are reviewed periodically and on an ad hoc basis as required. The Forum published its latest report A 10 Year Vision for Stem Cell Transplantation and Advanced Cellular Therapies in July 2022 to address weaknesses in stem cell transplantation services. The Forum is working with the Department, NHS England, NHS Blood and Transplant, clinicians, industry, and representatives of patient groups to take the recommendations forward. An oversight committee and five working groups have been established in line with the current terms of reference.
Asked by: Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative - Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing self-sufficiency in UK stem cell donations.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
The UK Stem Cell Strategic Forum, a Departmental advisory body, has recommended in its report A 10 Year Vision for Stem Cell Transplantation and Advanced Cellular Therapies that donor to patient unrelated donations in the United Kingdom should be increased to 45%. This will improve the sustainability and resilience of UK stem cell supply, maintain the UK’s expertise in stem cell provision and support adoption of advanced cellular therapies. The Department is investing £2.4 million between April 2022 and March 2025 to recruit stem cell donors to improve resilience and help address health inequalities.
Asked by: Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative - Thurrock)
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 body of evidence that is required to be submitted by cruise ship operators to (a) Public Health England and (b) the Department of Transport relating to covid-19 since domestic cruises were permitted to operate from 17 May 2021.
Answered by Jo Churchill
The seafarer exemption was originally designed for seafarers involved in keeping critical freight moving in and out of the country, not for cruises. Noting increased risks associated with variants of concern, the exemption for seafarers was amended accordingly.
We currently have no plans to designate non-operational cruise ships as Managed Quarantine Facilities using powers set out in Schedule 11 of the Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel and Operator Liability) (England) Regulations 2021.
The Government is collecting data from cruise lines as part of the ongoing review of satisfactory evidence from domestic cruises which have restarted, to support progression to international cruise restart. We are unable to publish this information as it is commercially sensitive.
Asked by: Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative - Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will designate non-operational cruise ships as a Managed Quarantine Service location using his powers set out in Schedule 11 of the Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel and Operator Liability) (England) Regulations 2021.
Answered by Jo Churchill
The seafarer exemption was originally designed for seafarers involved in keeping critical freight moving in and out of the country, not for cruises. Noting increased risks associated with variants of concern, the exemption for seafarers was amended accordingly.
We currently have no plans to designate non-operational cruise ships as Managed Quarantine Facilities using powers set out in Schedule 11 of the Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel and Operator Liability) (England) Regulations 2021.
The Government is collecting data from cruise lines as part of the ongoing review of satisfactory evidence from domestic cruises which have restarted, to support progression to international cruise restart. We are unable to publish this information as it is commercially sensitive.
Asked by: Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative - Thurrock)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason seafarers who work for cruise ship operators have been required to isolate on arrival in the UK in the Managed Quarantine Service rather on board a non-operational ship with medical facilities.
Answered by Jo Churchill
The seafarer exemption was originally designed for seafarers involved in keeping critical freight moving in and out of the country, not for cruises. Noting increased risks associated with variants of concern, the exemption for seafarers was amended accordingly.
We currently have no plans to designate non-operational cruise ships as Managed Quarantine Facilities using powers set out in Schedule 11 of the Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel and Operator Liability) (England) Regulations 2021.
The Government is collecting data from cruise lines as part of the ongoing review of satisfactory evidence from domestic cruises which have restarted, to support progression to international cruise restart. We are unable to publish this information as it is commercially sensitive.