Asked by: Jon Pearce (Labour - High Peak)
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 reform NHS health and social care services.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Lord Darzi's report made clear the NHS suffered from a failure to reform over the last 15 years. This government will deliver this reform with investment to turn services around.
Reform is at the heart of our health mission and will be delivered by the upcoming 10 Year Plan for Health – delivering on the three shifts needed to move healthcare from hospital to the community, analogue to digital, sickness to prevention.
We are also committed to building consensus on the long-term reform needed to create a National Care Service.
Asked by: Jon Pearce (Labour - High Peak)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what (a) support and (b) resources his Department has provided to help support GP surgeries to (i) clear patient backlogs and (ii) reduce workloads in High Peak constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We know that patients are finding it harder than ever to see a general practitioner (GP), and we are committed to fixing this crisis in GPs to secure the long-term sustainability of the National Health Service. High Peak sits within the NHS Derby and Derbyshire Integrated Care Board (ICB), where the percentage of appointments delivered within two weeks of booking is 12.7% lower than the national average.
This government has committed to fixing the front door to the NHS by shifting the focus from hospitals and into the community. We know that if patients can’t get a GP appointment, they will end up in A&E, which is worse for them, and more expensive for the taxpayer.
NHS England is working to address training bottlenecks so the health service has enough staff for the future, and we are providing £82m to fund the recruitment over 1,000 newly qualified GPs, to increase capacity and reduce workloads.
We are pleased to announce that newly qualified GPs will be included in the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme as part of an initiative to address GP unemployment, with additional funding over 2024/25.
Asked by: Jon Pearce (Labour - High Peak)
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 the recruitment and retention of GPs in High Peak constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have committed to training thousands more GPs across the country as well as taking pressure off those currently working in the system.
Derby and Derbyshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) reports that it supports recruitment and retention in the High Peak and across Derby and Derbyshire, providing a range of initiatives. These include a new to practice scheme that supports GPs and Practice Nurses for the first two years of their career, and GP mentorship and fellowship schemes.
We have accepted the recommendations of the DDRB, the independent pay review body, in full and subject to consultation with the BMA will uplift the pay element of the GP contract by 6% on a consolidated basis, to provide practices with funding to uplift GP partner, salaried GP and other salaried staff pay by 6%.
Funding for these awards will be backdated to April 2024, and it is our expectation this funding is passed on to all salaried general practice staff.
The government recently announced changes to the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme which allows primary care networks to recruit newly qualified GPs through the scheme for 24/25. This is an emergency measure whilst the government works with the profession to identify a longer term solution.
Asked by: Jon Pearce (Labour - High Peak)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many mental health support teams there were in (a) High Peak constituency, (b) Derbyshire and (c) London in each year since 2010.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
A table showing the number of operational and mobilising Mental Health Support Teams in London and Derbyshire, each year from 2018/19 to May 2023, is attached. Precise numbers may be subject to slight variation due to local mergers, as well as recruitment in the case of later years. The information is only available at an integrated care system level.
Asked by: Jon Pearce (Labour - High Peak)
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 GP surgeries are rated as good by the Care Quality Commission in High Peak constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As of 2 August 2024, there are 10 general practices (GPs) in the High Peak constituency rated Good by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), which is 77% as a proportion of all GPs in the constituency. There are currently 13 GPs overall registered with the CQC in the High Peak constituency.
Asked by: Jon Pearce (Labour - High Peak)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of care homes are rated as good by the Care Quality Commission in High Peak constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are currently 25 care homes registered with the Care Quality Commission in the High Peak constituency. As of 1 July 2024, 13 of those care homes, or 52%, are rated as ‘Good’.
Asked by: Jon Pearce (Labour - High Peak)
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 reduce waiting times for elective surgeries for people in High Peak constituency.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Reducing waiting times for elective surgery is a key part of our Health Mission, including for people in the High Peak constituency. We will start by delivering an extra 40,000 operations, scans, and appointments each week across the country, as the first step in our commitment to ensuring patients can expect to be treated within 18 weeks. We are also addressing the challenges in diagnostic waiting times and will ensure we have the number of computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging scans, and other tests, that are needed to reduce elective and cancer waits.
Asked by: Jon Pearce (Labour - High Peak)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will provide additional funding for the provision of out-of-hours GP appointments in (a) High Peak constituency and (b) Derbyshire.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Integrated care boards (ICBs) must ensure that out-of-hours appointments are available to patients to help them access care at convenient times, for example on weekends, evenings, or bank holidays.
The Derby and Derbyshire ICB commissions Derbyshire Health United to provide out of hours general practice (GP) appointments. The ICB also commissions GPs to provide extended access appointments during the period from 8:00am to 8:00pm on Monday to Friday, and 9:00am to 5:00pm on Saturday, as part of the national Primary Care Network Directed Enhanced Service.
Asked by: Jon Pearce (Labour - High Peak)
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 the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of mental health specialists in High Peak constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
People with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need, which is why we will ensure we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health, so that people can be confident in accessing high quality mental health support when they need it. As set out in the NHS Priorities and Operational Planning Guidance for 2024/25, NHS England is continuing to expand access to mental health services, to increase the number of people accessing mental health support. We plan to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers across child and adult mental health services in England, including in the High Peak constituency, to reduce delays and provide faster treatment.
Asked by: Jon Pearce (Labour - High Peak)
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 improve access to mental health services in High Peak constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
People with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need, which is why we will ensure we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health, so that people can be confident in accessing high quality mental health support when they need it. As set out in the NHS Priorities and Operational Planning Guidance for 2024/25, NHS England is continuing to expand access to mental health services, to increase the number of people accessing mental health support. We plan to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers across child and adult mental health services in England, including in the High Peak constituency, to reduce delays and provide faster treatment.