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 ensure (a) expertise and (b) public confidence are retained in Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy services available on the NHS.

NHS England is currently reviewing the service provision and national service specification for Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Services, used to clearly define the standards of care expected from organisations funded by NHS England to provide specialised care, due to the current service contracts expiring during 2025. Revisions to service specification follow the published process, which supports appropriate stakeholder engagement and governance. More information on the process is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/methods-national-service-specifications/

NHS England has considered the feedback received from the recent public consultation on the Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Services revised service specification, alongside other sources of evidence, to inform its plans for the service re-procurement. The outcome of this will be made available in due course.

Further, NHS England is required to commission services, including Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Services, in line with the National Health Service’s triple aim of improving health outcomes, improving quality of care and ensuring value for the system.