Asked by: Polly Billington (Labour - East Thanet)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending Do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation forms to include a confirmation of consultation field that must be signed by the patient or family to make it effective.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
No assessment of the potential merits of amending Do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation (DNACPR) forms to include a confirmation of consultation field that must be signed by the patient or family has been undertaken.
When a DNACPR decision is being made, the clinician should consider the patient’s wishes and every effort should be taken to reach an agreement with the patient or, if they lack capacity, their family or representative. If the patient or their family or representative do not agree with the decision, they should be given time to ask for a second opinion or review. This is in line with the National Health Service guidance for DNACPR decisions. Guidance and information for the public on DNACPR decisions is available on the NHS website, including information on asking for a second opinion or a review and what to do if there are concerns about, or disagreement with, a DNACPR form in a patient’s or family member’s medical records.
Professional guidance on Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation is provided by clinical bodies such as the British Medical Association, the Resuscitation Council UK, and Royal College of Nursing, to support consistent decision-making, and to reflect these principles.
Asked by: Polly Billington (Labour - East Thanet)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of conducting a national audit of Do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation orders for patients with learning disabilities.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is clear that the inappropriate or blanket use of Do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation (DNACPR) decisions is wholly unacceptable, and that no one should have a DNACPR decision in place simply because they have a learning disability. All DNACPR decisions must be made on an individual basis, involving the person concerned and, where appropriate, their family or legally recognised advocate.
Asked by: Polly Billington (Labour - East Thanet)
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 help increase early diagnosis for blood cancer.
Answered by Ashley Dalton
The Department continues to support the National Health Service to diagnose and treat cancer, including blood cancers, as early and fast as possible.
To increase early diagnosis of blood cancer, the NHS has implemented non-specific symptom (NSS) pathways for patients who present with symptoms such as weight loss and fatigue, which do not clearly align to a tumour type such as blood cancer. There are currently 115 NSS services operating in England, with blood cancers being one of the most common cancer types diagnosed through these pathways.
Early diagnosis is a key focus of the National Cancer Plan. It will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, including speeding up diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology, and ultimately driving up this country’s cancer survival rates.
Asked by: Polly Billington (Labour - East Thanet)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Learning Disability annual health check has been removed as a national target for primary care in the 2025-26 NHS plan.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The national target to complete annual health checks for 75% of people with a learning disability is not included in the 2025/26 NHS Planning Guidance. Most recent data from 2023/24 shows 79.6% of checks were delivered, surpassing the previous 75% National Health Service target.
To ensure these important checks continue, 2025/26 Planning Guidance still requires integrated care boards (ICBs) to report on the number of people on the Learning Disability Register who receive an annual health check, supported by a health action plan, each quarter. These checks are the first line of defence for people with a learning disability, many of whom live with additional health needs including long-term conditions. Over the past few years, and particularly through the pandemic, strong support from general practitioners to maintain learning disability annual health checks has enabled more people than ever before to have a health check and health action plan, an increase of more than 20% since 2020.
NHS England is working with people with lived experience, clinical professionals and ICB commissioners to produce an annual health check quality framework. The Annual Health Check quality framework will set out both the purpose, content and outcomes expected within an annual health check and the accompanying health action plan.