Asked by: Jo Churchill (Conservative - Bury St Edmunds)
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 improvement at the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust.
Answered by Gillian Keegan
NHS England’s recovery programme is working directly with Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust. In addition, the Care Quality Commission is currently proceeding with the enforcement process of the Section 29A Warning Notice and has scheduled an unannounced follow up inspection. The CQC’s engagement with and visits to the Trust will continue, with further visits planned in August 2022.
Asked by: Jo Churchill (Conservative - Bury St Edmunds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on expanding the number of mental health clinicians working in schools.
Answered by Gillian Keegan
We have committed to deploy mental health support teams to approximately 35% of schools and colleges by 2023. The role of education mental health practitioner has recently been added to mental health support teams. Since 2019, 1,164 practitioners have completed the one-year training. A further 503 are in training, with 221 due to complete training in September 2022 and the remaining 282 in January 2023. A further 456 training places have been commissioned, with 245 starting in September 2022 and the remaining 211 in January 2023. These cohorts will be available to join services in schools in September 2023 and January 2024 respectively.
Asked by: Jo Churchill (Conservative - Bury St Edmunds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what additional steps his Department will be taking to build further dental capacity in Suffolk.
Answered by James Morris
NHS England has agreed short-term funding for dentistry in the Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care System to increase access to urgent dental care in Suffolk until 31 March 2023. The National Health Service in the East of England has developed a transformational dental strategy to deliver universal access to urgent dental care and preventative care.
Asked by: Jo Churchill (Conservative - Bury St Edmunds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many technology appraisals NICE has undertaken for medicines which have successfully passed through the Early Access to Medicines Scheme; and what the NICE recommendation was for each of those appraisals.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has advised that it has published seven technology appraisals on products that have received a positive scientific opinion through the Early Access to Medicines Scheme. Information on NICE’s recommendations for each appraisal is shown in the attached table.
Asked by: Jo Churchill (Conservative - Bury St Edmunds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what account NICE takes of the fact that medicines have successfully passed through the Early Access to Medicines Scheme due to high unmet medical needs when undertaking technology appraisals.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has advised that it takes the opinion provided by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency into account, where it is considered relevant to its recommendations. NICE offers companies the opportunity to meet with NICE and NHS England to discuss feasibility/applicability of proposed plans to collect data during the Early Access to Medicines Scheme period which could inform a NICE evaluation. NICE endeavours to schedule these topics into its work programme as soon as possible, so that it can produce timely guidance.
Asked by: Jo Churchill (Conservative - Bury St Edmunds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he plans to publish the Government's response to the accelerated access review.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
The Government is carefully considering the recommendations in the Accelerated Access Review with its key partners and will provide a formal response shortly.
Asked by: Jo Churchill (Conservative - Bury St Edmunds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the cost of unreturned NHS community equipment in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by David Mowat
The information requested is not collected centrally. This is due to many areas having local arrangements for pooled budgets with the local authority under Section 75 of the National Health Service Act 2006 for an integrated community equipment service.
Asked by: Jo Churchill (Conservative - Bury St Edmunds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect of restrictions imposed by NHS England on the use of the (a) dabrafenib plus trametinib and (b) ipilimumab plus nivolumab drug combinations for use in the treatment of advanced melanoma on patient care.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
We have made no such assessment.
NHS England has advised that it has carefully translated the evidence base on which the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has based its recommendations of clinical and cost effectiveness into practical clarifications which directly relate to how the recommended drug combinations are incorporated into known treatment pathways in use in England. It has advised that each set of such clarifications is in keeping with the NICE recommendations.
Asked by: Jo Churchill (Conservative - Bury St Edmunds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress has been made in implementing the Five Year Forward View commitment to increasing cancer diagnostic capacity.
Answered by David Mowat
Simon Stevens, Chief Executive of NHS England, announced on 6 December that £200 million would be available in 2017/18 and 2018/19 to support Cancer Alliances to develop their approach to earlier diagnosis and living with and beyond cancer. This will include investment both to make sure services are getting the most out of our existing capacity, and to support increases in diagnostic capacity. Cancer Alliances will be submitting bids for this funding through a ‘best possible value’ process. Although Cancer Alliances are free to include independent provision as part of their bid where they feel it is appropriate and meets the ‘best possible value’ criteria, it is not a requirement.
Asked by: Jo Churchill (Conservative - Bury St Edmunds)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how the National Diagnostic Capacity Fund will support NHS commissioners and providers to utilise independent sector providers of diagnostic services.
Answered by David Mowat
Simon Stevens, Chief Executive of NHS England, announced on 6 December that £200 million would be available in 2017/18 and 2018/19 to support Cancer Alliances to develop their approach to earlier diagnosis and living with and beyond cancer. This will include investment both to make sure services are getting the most out of our existing capacity, and to support increases in diagnostic capacity. Cancer Alliances will be submitting bids for this funding through a ‘best possible value’ process. Although Cancer Alliances are free to include independent provision as part of their bid where they feel it is appropriate and meets the ‘best possible value’ criteria, it is not a requirement.