Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support individuals with limb loss to use the healthcare system by innovation in assistive technologies.

Appointments for prosthetics services are offered over a range of media, including via video and telephone. All patients, including individuals with limb loss, can access environmental controls if they meet the criteria as set out within the service specifications Environmental Control Equipment for Patients with Complex Disability (All Ages) and Complex Disability Equipment – Prosthetic Specialised Services For People Of All Ages With Limb Loss, copies of which are attached.

NHS England’s Clinical Priorities Advisory Group has approved a new service specification titled Prosthetic Specialised Services For People Of All Ages With Limb Loss, due for publication in May 2025. This will be implemented by all 35 specialist centres providing prosthetics care. It will improve outcomes for those with limb loss by offering personalised care and enabling patient choice. It also includes metrics which can be used to monitor access times and the quality of care.

NHS England is also reviewing the Clinical Commissioning Policy relating to multi-grip hand and upper limb prosthesis. To inform this review, an audit exploring data relating to the uptake and the latest clinical outcomes is underway, with results expected in Summer 2025. Alongside this, NHS England is commissioning a horizon scan of the latest prosthesis innovations.

The Department will continue to encourage greater innovation in the health sector to help support the three big shifts in healthcare, from hospitals to communities, from analogue to digital, and from treatment to prevention, which are set out as part of the Government’s Health Mission.

The upcoming Life Sciences Sector Plan, as part of the United Kingdom’s industrial strategy, and the 10-Year Health Plan present significant opportunities to enable patients to benefit from the strengthening of the UK’s life sciences sector, ensuring that innovation is embedded across the healthcare system. This will build on the Department’s Medical Technology Strategy, published in February 2023, and the subsequent One Year On Report in April 2024, outlining our priorities for improving the adoption and spread of safe, effective, and innovative medical technologies across the National Health Service.