Asked by: Josh Babarinde (Liberal Democrat - Eastbourne)
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 reduce levels of stigma experienced by people with HIV within the health and social care system.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The latest Positive Voices Report published by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) in January 2024 made it clear that stigma continues to be experienced by people living with HIV.
HIV Prevention England, funded by the Department, hosted a HIV Stigma Symposium in March 2024 which brought together approximately 100 community experts, activists, healthcare professionals, and affected individuals to discuss the impact of HIV stigma. This showcased the innovation and effectiveness of stigma reduction strategies being implemented across the country.
The Department, the UKHSA, NHS England, and a broad range of system partners are developing a new HIV Action Plan which will include a focus on stigma. We aim to publish this by summer 2025.
Asked by: Josh Babarinde (Liberal Democrat - Eastbourne)
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 improve NHS workforce training on HIV (a) awareness and (b) treatment.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The standard of training for health care professionals is the responsibility of the independent, statutory health care regulatory bodies and higher education institutions who set the outcome standards expected at undergraduate level and determine the content of their curriculum, in line with General Medical Council guidelines.
Individual National Health Service trusts are responsible for investing in post-registration training to ensure that staff can effectively deliver sexual and reproductive health services, including HIV treatment. In addition, NHS England’s e-Learning for Healthcare includes a range of programmes and material which focus on HIV.
The Department, the UK Health Security Agency, NHS England, and a broad range of system partners are developing a new HIV Action Plan and considering the next steps needed for the workforce within it. We aim to publish this by summer 2025.
Asked by: Josh Babarinde (Liberal Democrat - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has taken recent steps to implement an advanced brain injury strategy.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government wants a society where every person, including those with a long-term condition such as an acquired brain injury (ABI), receives high-quality, compassionate continuity of care, with their families and carers supported.
We will change the National Health Service so that it becomes not just a sickness service, but a service that is able to prevent ill health in the first place. This will help us be better prepared for the change in the nature of disease, and allow our services to focus more on the management of chronic, long-term conditions, like ABIs, including rehabilitation where appropriate. A decision on the next steps on ABI at the national level will be taken in the coming months.