Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he has assessed the implications for his policies of the findings and recommendations of the report published by the College of Occupational Therapists on 16 November 2016 entitled Reducing the pressure on hospitals: A report on the value of occupation therapy in England; and if he will make a statement.

The Government welcomes the College of Occupational Therapist’s report ‘Reducing the pressure on hospitals’, which was published in November. We recognise that occupational therapists are key to supporting safe and timely hospital discharge. Occupational therapists work seamless across health and social care, are natural integrators and understand what factors enable individuals to lead independent and fulfilled lives.

Winter preparedness funding was included in allocations to clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) at the start of the 2016-17 financial year. It is for CCGs to decide how to use this funding to prepare for winter. The Department is working closely with NHS England and NHS Improvement to ensure there is robust governance and operational arrangements in place to help prevent avoidable hospital admissions and to improve access and flow through hospital when patients are admitted.

All NHS trusts must ensure that they have the professions with the right skills working within rapid response and acute and emergency care service. It is for local trusts and commissioners, working with NHS England, to ensure that they fully utilise the vital skills and knowledge of their occupational therapists as part of the multi-disciplinary team, and working across health and social care.