Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Sunderland West)
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 contracting (a) rehabilitation, (b) therapy and (c) other similar services for key workers.
Answered by Will Quince
No assessment has been made of the potential merits of contracting rehabilitation, therapy, and other services for key workers in the National Health Service. NHS England has developed a range of health and wellbeing initiatives, including a health and wellbeing guardian role, a focus on healthy working environments, empowering line managers to hold meaningful conversations with staff to discuss their wellbeing, and a comprehensive emotional and psychological health and wellbeing support package.
NHS England has also published a ‘Growing Occupational Health and Wellbeing Together’ strategy. This sets out a roadmap for the NHS and partner organisations to work together to develop and invest in occupational health and wellbeing services for NHS staff over the next five years.
To ensure there is a long-term sustainable approach to supporting staff, the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan has tasked integrated care systems with developing and implementing plans, in line with NHS England’s strategy, to invest in occupational health and wellbeing services.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has provided guidance to (a) NHS Supply Chain and (b) other purchasing managers in (i) the NHS and (ii) social care services on assessing the whole system cost of incontinence products prior to making value-based procurement decisions.
Answered by Will Quince
We are working to improve spend data systems through implementation of the Government’s Medical Technology Strategy. There are different supply routes available in the NHS, including through NHS Supply Chain, NHS Shared Business Services, direct from supplier to Trust and via prescription on Part IX of the Drug Tariff. NHS Supply Chain are currently in the process of working on two separate value-based procurement projects for continence, both of which aim to concentrate on patient outcomes.
Regulation 68 of the Public Contract Regulations (PCR) 2015 allows contracting authorities to determine the most economically advantageous tender and the lowest cost by using a life-cycle costing approach which includes all costs over the life cycle of works, supplies or services.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the commissioning of health services, including urinary incontinence for their local health economy and taking into account guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. NHS England’s Excellence in Continence Care guidance published in July 2018, indicates that personalised care including personal health budgets can be arranged locally by ICBs to help people manage and pay for their continence care needs.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2022 to Question 80788, if he will list the stakeholder organisations who NHS England are consulting as part of the development of a framework for integrated care systems to commission effective efficient and personalised wheelchair services, including for those under five years old.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
NHS England does not have a specific date agreed for publishing the all age Wheelchair Commissioning Framework for commissioning wheelchair services, including for those under five years old.
As part of development of the Wheelchair Commissioning Framework, NHS England has consulted with the following stakeholders in the National Wheelchair Advisory Group:
- National Wheelchair Managers Forum;
- Whizz Kids;
- The National Wheelchair Alliance;
- Wheelchair Service Managers;
- Newlife Foundation Charity;
- Bangor University;
- Commissioners from integrated care boards (ICBs);
- Provider organisations;
- People with Lived Experience;
- Posture Mobility Group; and
- ResMag Rehabilitation Engineering Profession.
The Wheelchair Commissioning Framework does not include a review of National Health Service wheelchair services eligibility criteria. ICBs are responsible for the provision and commissioning of local wheelchairs services and for the development of the local wheelchair service eligibility criteria based on the needs of their local population.
This includes responsibility for conducting an Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment for their current specifications for wheelchair and posture eligibility and issuing criteria for children aged five and under. NHS England has not issued any guidance or model service specifications related to wheelchair and posture eligibility specifically focussed on children aged five and under. The current model service specification and future commissioning framework are tools to support ICBs to commission wheelchair services for all ages.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2022 to Question 80788 on Wheelchairs: Children, whether work to produce a framework for integrated care systems to commission effective, efficient and personalised wheelchair services will include a review of the eligibility and issuing criteria of children aged five and under.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
NHS England does not have a specific date agreed for publishing the all age Wheelchair Commissioning Framework for commissioning wheelchair services, including for those under five years old.
As part of development of the Wheelchair Commissioning Framework, NHS England has consulted with the following stakeholders in the National Wheelchair Advisory Group:
- National Wheelchair Managers Forum;
- Whizz Kids;
- The National Wheelchair Alliance;
- Wheelchair Service Managers;
- Newlife Foundation Charity;
- Bangor University;
- Commissioners from integrated care boards (ICBs);
- Provider organisations;
- People with Lived Experience;
- Posture Mobility Group; and
- ResMag Rehabilitation Engineering Profession.
The Wheelchair Commissioning Framework does not include a review of National Health Service wheelchair services eligibility criteria. ICBs are responsible for the provision and commissioning of local wheelchairs services and for the development of the local wheelchair service eligibility criteria based on the needs of their local population.
This includes responsibility for conducting an Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment for their current specifications for wheelchair and posture eligibility and issuing criteria for children aged five and under. NHS England has not issued any guidance or model service specifications related to wheelchair and posture eligibility specifically focussed on children aged five and under. The current model service specification and future commissioning framework are tools to support ICBs to commission wheelchair services for all ages.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2022 to Question 80788, on what date NHS England plans to publish the framework for integrated care systems to commission effective, efficient and personalised wheelchair services, including for those under five years old.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
NHS England does not have a specific date agreed for publishing the all age Wheelchair Commissioning Framework for commissioning wheelchair services, including for those under five years old.
As part of development of the Wheelchair Commissioning Framework, NHS England has consulted with the following stakeholders in the National Wheelchair Advisory Group:
- National Wheelchair Managers Forum;
- Whizz Kids;
- The National Wheelchair Alliance;
- Wheelchair Service Managers;
- Newlife Foundation Charity;
- Bangor University;
- Commissioners from integrated care boards (ICBs);
- Provider organisations;
- People with Lived Experience;
- Posture Mobility Group; and
- ResMag Rehabilitation Engineering Profession.
The Wheelchair Commissioning Framework does not include a review of National Health Service wheelchair services eligibility criteria. ICBs are responsible for the provision and commissioning of local wheelchairs services and for the development of the local wheelchair service eligibility criteria based on the needs of their local population.
This includes responsibility for conducting an Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment for their current specifications for wheelchair and posture eligibility and issuing criteria for children aged five and under. NHS England has not issued any guidance or model service specifications related to wheelchair and posture eligibility specifically focussed on children aged five and under. The current model service specification and future commissioning framework are tools to support ICBs to commission wheelchair services for all ages.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason there is no single centralised system for holding NHS records; and whether she plans to introduce such a system.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
On 24 February 2022, we announced a target for 90% of National Health Service trusts to have an electronic patient record (EPR) in place by December 2023, increasing to 100% by March 2025. Individual trusts have different requirements and work directly with suppliers to customise systems and procure EPRs to meet local needs.
The NHS is also piloting digital platforms to increase productivity and reduce the need for patients to repeatedly share information, by enabling clinicians and managers to manage waiting lists and improve theatre use. This will combine data from organisations within an integrated care system to assist planning and population health management and will be federated to national and regional levels. The platform will not replace existing local systems and will be used in conjunction with existing assets to support collaboration and innovation.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what is the agreed salary range for chief executives of integrated care systems.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Integrated care systems (ICSs) are categorised from A to D, depending on their weighted population determined by factors including complexity, population health and demographics. For those ICSs in band A, NHS England and NHS Improvement can approve chief executive salaries of between £175,000 and £197,500. For band B, salaries of between £190,000 to £212,500 can be approved, with salaries of between £220,000 and £245,000 for band C and between £250,000 and £275,000 for band D. In exceptional cases, such as where an area has multiple significant health and organisational challenges, NHS England and NHS Improvement can seek ministerial approval for higher salaries. Most chief executives in ICSs are expected to be in bands A and B. The following table shows the bands for the ICSs requested.
ICS | Band |
Humber Coast and Vale | C |
North East and North Cumbria | D |
South Yorkshire | C |
West Yorkshire and Harrogate | D |