Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the report by the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch COVID-19 transmission in hospitals:management of the risk – a prospective safety investigation, published in October 2020, what steps they are taking to provide clarity about national responsibilities, ownership and process for the development of national infection prevention and control guidance.
We will work with partners to develop a transparent process to co-ordinate the development, dissemination and implementation of national guidance across the healthcare system to minimise the risk of nosocomial transmission of COVID-19. This includes agreeing roles and responsibilities, a clear process and timescales with NHS England and NHS Improvement, Public Health England and other system partners for infection prevention and control guidance development or review at a national and system level.