Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of service level agreements relating to processing (a) safeguarding (i) alerts and (ii) concerns and (b) whistleblowing have been reached at the Care Quality Commission in the last two months.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) receives feedback on care through its dedicated digital service, 'Give feedback on care', and its National Customer Service Centre (NCSC). As well as online through the digital service, healthcare staff or members of the public can contact CQC via phone, email or letter.
When CQC receives a safeguarding and/or whistleblowing concern, this is received by the NCSC team who will triage and prioritise the concern for further action.
Highest priority alerts are sent to the relevant local authority for further action, as they have the powers to intervene if necessary.
For the last two months CQC processed 6,219 safeguarding enquiries, including both alerts and concerns and it received and processed 1,888 whistleblowing enquiries.
In July 2023, CQC launched their new digital platform, which has already shown substantial increase in the number of safeguarding enquiries in August.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Care Quality Commission in examining cases reported by whistle-blowers concerning claims of misconduct, bullying, harassment and discrimination.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) takes very seriously issues that are raised with them in relation to patient and worker safety. They also use such information to help shape their regulatory action. The CQC normally receives reports on whistle-blowers concerns through its National Customer Service Centre, as well as via their online digital service, healthcare staff or members of the public. When the CQC receives a whistleblowing concern, it is triaged and prioritised for further action.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to review guidance on the (a) use and (b) access to medicines and equipment in neonatal wards.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
On 4 September 2023, my Rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced an independent inquiry, to be led by Lady Justice Thirlwall, into the events at the Countess of Chester Hospital and the actions of Lucy Letby. In line with the wishes of the families, this will be a full statutory inquiry established under the Inquiries Act 2005, giving it legal powers to compel witnesses to give evidence under oath.
The Secretary of State ordered the Inquiry on the day of Lucy Letby’s conviction and has made clear that the wishes of the families will remain central to how the inquiry is taken forward to provide the answers they need. The Secretary of State will make a statement on the Inquiry’s terms of reference at the earliest opportunity.
We have asked NHS Resolution to look at compensation and it will work with the families and their representatives to agree an approach which is sympathetic and fair and minimises any further distress. At this time, the police have arrangements in place to appropriately support families impacted, including psychological support and family liaison officers.
We have taken action to improve patient safety and identify warning signs more quickly and will continue to make improvements. In 2019, we introduced medical examiners across England and Wales to independently scrutinise deaths not investigated by a coroner and will now make this a statutory role.
Additionally, the Secretary of State has asked for the Department and NHS England to revisit recommendation 5 of the Kark review, on disbarring senior managers for serious misconduct.
In 2020, NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time programme was expanded to cover neonatal services. It reviewed England’s neonatal services using detailed data and gave trusts individual improvement plans, which they are working towards.
On 27 March 2023, the Government announced a review of the whistleblowing legal framework. The Government supports the right of staff working in the National Health Service to speak up and raise concerns. There is a range of support and protection in place, including legal protections to prohibit detriment and discrimination against workers and job applicants who have spoken up. The review will examine the effectiveness of the framework in meeting its intended objectives of enabling workers to come forward to speak up about wrongdoing and to protect those who do so against detriment and dismissal.
The Secretary of State has asked the Department and NHS England to explore if introducing ‘Martha’s rule’ would enhance patient safety in England. This could follow Ryan’s rule, established in Queensland, Australia, which allows patients or their families to request a clinical review of their case from a doctor or nurse if their condition is deteriorating or not improving as expected
A formal assessment has not been made of the level of public trust in the safety of neonatal care. NHS England’s Three-Year Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services, published in March 2023, sets out how NHS England will make maternity and neonatal care safer, more personalised, and more equitable for women, babies, and families. The Delivery Plan has provided a clear and co-ordinated direction which will guide maternity services to provide women and families with the care and support they need. There are no plans to do a formal review of the use and access to medicines and equipment in neonatal wards.
On neonatal mortality rates and unexplained deaths, although there are no current plans to launch a nationwide review, the ‘Child Death Review: Statutory and Operational Guidance’ outlines the duties of Child Death Review partners in relation to the processes to be followed when responding to, investigating, and reviewing the death of any child, from any cause. The Child Death Review is a statutory process, which involves a multi-disciplinary child death overview panel to ensure that lessons are learnt from child deaths, that learning is widely shared and actions are taken to reduce preventable child deaths in the future.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what protocols are in place to (a) monitor and (b) evaluate (i) neonatal mortality rates and (ii) suspicious occurrences in neonatal units in NHS hospitals.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
On 4 September 2023, my Rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced an independent inquiry, to be led by Lady Justice Thirlwall, into the events at the Countess of Chester Hospital and the actions of Lucy Letby. In line with the wishes of the families, this will be a full statutory inquiry established under the Inquiries Act 2005, giving it legal powers to compel witnesses to give evidence under oath.
The Secretary of State ordered the Inquiry on the day of Lucy Letby’s conviction and has made clear that the wishes of the families will remain central to how the inquiry is taken forward to provide the answers they need. The Secretary of State will make a statement on the Inquiry’s terms of reference at the earliest opportunity.
We have asked NHS Resolution to look at compensation and it will work with the families and their representatives to agree an approach which is sympathetic and fair and minimises any further distress. At this time, the police have arrangements in place to appropriately support families impacted, including psychological support and family liaison officers.
We have taken action to improve patient safety and identify warning signs more quickly and will continue to make improvements. In 2019, we introduced medical examiners across England and Wales to independently scrutinise deaths not investigated by a coroner and will now make this a statutory role.
Additionally, the Secretary of State has asked for the Department and NHS England to revisit recommendation 5 of the Kark review, on disbarring senior managers for serious misconduct.
In 2020, NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time programme was expanded to cover neonatal services. It reviewed England’s neonatal services using detailed data and gave trusts individual improvement plans, which they are working towards.
On 27 March 2023, the Government announced a review of the whistleblowing legal framework. The Government supports the right of staff working in the National Health Service to speak up and raise concerns. There is a range of support and protection in place, including legal protections to prohibit detriment and discrimination against workers and job applicants who have spoken up. The review will examine the effectiveness of the framework in meeting its intended objectives of enabling workers to come forward to speak up about wrongdoing and to protect those who do so against detriment and dismissal.
The Secretary of State has asked the Department and NHS England to explore if introducing ‘Martha’s rule’ would enhance patient safety in England. This could follow Ryan’s rule, established in Queensland, Australia, which allows patients or their families to request a clinical review of their case from a doctor or nurse if their condition is deteriorating or not improving as expected
A formal assessment has not been made of the level of public trust in the safety of neonatal care. NHS England’s Three-Year Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services, published in March 2023, sets out how NHS England will make maternity and neonatal care safer, more personalised, and more equitable for women, babies, and families. The Delivery Plan has provided a clear and co-ordinated direction which will guide maternity services to provide women and families with the care and support they need. There are no plans to do a formal review of the use and access to medicines and equipment in neonatal wards.
On neonatal mortality rates and unexplained deaths, although there are no current plans to launch a nationwide review, the ‘Child Death Review: Statutory and Operational Guidance’ outlines the duties of Child Death Review partners in relation to the processes to be followed when responding to, investigating, and reviewing the death of any child, from any cause. The Child Death Review is a statutory process, which involves a multi-disciplinary child death overview panel to ensure that lessons are learnt from child deaths, that learning is widely shared and actions are taken to reduce preventable child deaths in the future.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department plans to take to help ensure that NHS whistleblowers are protected when raising concerns.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
On 4 September 2023, my Rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced an independent inquiry, to be led by Lady Justice Thirlwall, into the events at the Countess of Chester Hospital and the actions of Lucy Letby. In line with the wishes of the families, this will be a full statutory inquiry established under the Inquiries Act 2005, giving it legal powers to compel witnesses to give evidence under oath.
The Secretary of State ordered the Inquiry on the day of Lucy Letby’s conviction and has made clear that the wishes of the families will remain central to how the inquiry is taken forward to provide the answers they need. The Secretary of State will make a statement on the Inquiry’s terms of reference at the earliest opportunity.
We have asked NHS Resolution to look at compensation and it will work with the families and their representatives to agree an approach which is sympathetic and fair and minimises any further distress. At this time, the police have arrangements in place to appropriately support families impacted, including psychological support and family liaison officers.
We have taken action to improve patient safety and identify warning signs more quickly and will continue to make improvements. In 2019, we introduced medical examiners across England and Wales to independently scrutinise deaths not investigated by a coroner and will now make this a statutory role.
Additionally, the Secretary of State has asked for the Department and NHS England to revisit recommendation 5 of the Kark review, on disbarring senior managers for serious misconduct.
In 2020, NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time programme was expanded to cover neonatal services. It reviewed England’s neonatal services using detailed data and gave trusts individual improvement plans, which they are working towards.
On 27 March 2023, the Government announced a review of the whistleblowing legal framework. The Government supports the right of staff working in the National Health Service to speak up and raise concerns. There is a range of support and protection in place, including legal protections to prohibit detriment and discrimination against workers and job applicants who have spoken up. The review will examine the effectiveness of the framework in meeting its intended objectives of enabling workers to come forward to speak up about wrongdoing and to protect those who do so against detriment and dismissal.
The Secretary of State has asked the Department and NHS England to explore if introducing ‘Martha’s rule’ would enhance patient safety in England. This could follow Ryan’s rule, established in Queensland, Australia, which allows patients or their families to request a clinical review of their case from a doctor or nurse if their condition is deteriorating or not improving as expected
A formal assessment has not been made of the level of public trust in the safety of neonatal care. NHS England’s Three-Year Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services, published in March 2023, sets out how NHS England will make maternity and neonatal care safer, more personalised, and more equitable for women, babies, and families. The Delivery Plan has provided a clear and co-ordinated direction which will guide maternity services to provide women and families with the care and support they need. There are no plans to do a formal review of the use and access to medicines and equipment in neonatal wards.
On neonatal mortality rates and unexplained deaths, although there are no current plans to launch a nationwide review, the ‘Child Death Review: Statutory and Operational Guidance’ outlines the duties of Child Death Review partners in relation to the processes to be followed when responding to, investigating, and reviewing the death of any child, from any cause. The Child Death Review is a statutory process, which involves a multi-disciplinary child death overview panel to ensure that lessons are learnt from child deaths, that learning is widely shared and actions are taken to reduce preventable child deaths in the future.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to launch a nationwide review of neonatal (a) mortality rates and (b) unexplained deaths.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
On 4 September 2023, my Rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced an independent inquiry, to be led by Lady Justice Thirlwall, into the events at the Countess of Chester Hospital and the actions of Lucy Letby. In line with the wishes of the families, this will be a full statutory inquiry established under the Inquiries Act 2005, giving it legal powers to compel witnesses to give evidence under oath.
The Secretary of State ordered the Inquiry on the day of Lucy Letby’s conviction and has made clear that the wishes of the families will remain central to how the inquiry is taken forward to provide the answers they need. The Secretary of State will make a statement on the Inquiry’s terms of reference at the earliest opportunity.
We have asked NHS Resolution to look at compensation and it will work with the families and their representatives to agree an approach which is sympathetic and fair and minimises any further distress. At this time, the police have arrangements in place to appropriately support families impacted, including psychological support and family liaison officers.
We have taken action to improve patient safety and identify warning signs more quickly and will continue to make improvements. In 2019, we introduced medical examiners across England and Wales to independently scrutinise deaths not investigated by a coroner and will now make this a statutory role.
Additionally, the Secretary of State has asked for the Department and NHS England to revisit recommendation 5 of the Kark review, on disbarring senior managers for serious misconduct.
In 2020, NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time programme was expanded to cover neonatal services. It reviewed England’s neonatal services using detailed data and gave trusts individual improvement plans, which they are working towards.
On 27 March 2023, the Government announced a review of the whistleblowing legal framework. The Government supports the right of staff working in the National Health Service to speak up and raise concerns. There is a range of support and protection in place, including legal protections to prohibit detriment and discrimination against workers and job applicants who have spoken up. The review will examine the effectiveness of the framework in meeting its intended objectives of enabling workers to come forward to speak up about wrongdoing and to protect those who do so against detriment and dismissal.
The Secretary of State has asked the Department and NHS England to explore if introducing ‘Martha’s rule’ would enhance patient safety in England. This could follow Ryan’s rule, established in Queensland, Australia, which allows patients or their families to request a clinical review of their case from a doctor or nurse if their condition is deteriorating or not improving as expected
A formal assessment has not been made of the level of public trust in the safety of neonatal care. NHS England’s Three-Year Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services, published in March 2023, sets out how NHS England will make maternity and neonatal care safer, more personalised, and more equitable for women, babies, and families. The Delivery Plan has provided a clear and co-ordinated direction which will guide maternity services to provide women and families with the care and support they need. There are no plans to do a formal review of the use and access to medicines and equipment in neonatal wards.
On neonatal mortality rates and unexplained deaths, although there are no current plans to launch a nationwide review, the ‘Child Death Review: Statutory and Operational Guidance’ outlines the duties of Child Death Review partners in relation to the processes to be followed when responding to, investigating, and reviewing the death of any child, from any cause. The Child Death Review is a statutory process, which involves a multi-disciplinary child death overview panel to ensure that lessons are learnt from child deaths, that learning is widely shared and actions are taken to reduce preventable child deaths in the future.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the level of public trust in the safety of neonatal care.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
On 4 September 2023, my Rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced an independent inquiry, to be led by Lady Justice Thirlwall, into the events at the Countess of Chester Hospital and the actions of Lucy Letby. In line with the wishes of the families, this will be a full statutory inquiry established under the Inquiries Act 2005, giving it legal powers to compel witnesses to give evidence under oath.
The Secretary of State ordered the Inquiry on the day of Lucy Letby’s conviction and has made clear that the wishes of the families will remain central to how the inquiry is taken forward to provide the answers they need. The Secretary of State will make a statement on the Inquiry’s terms of reference at the earliest opportunity.
We have asked NHS Resolution to look at compensation and it will work with the families and their representatives to agree an approach which is sympathetic and fair and minimises any further distress. At this time, the police have arrangements in place to appropriately support families impacted, including psychological support and family liaison officers.
We have taken action to improve patient safety and identify warning signs more quickly and will continue to make improvements. In 2019, we introduced medical examiners across England and Wales to independently scrutinise deaths not investigated by a coroner and will now make this a statutory role.
Additionally, the Secretary of State has asked for the Department and NHS England to revisit recommendation 5 of the Kark review, on disbarring senior managers for serious misconduct.
In 2020, NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time programme was expanded to cover neonatal services. It reviewed England’s neonatal services using detailed data and gave trusts individual improvement plans, which they are working towards.
On 27 March 2023, the Government announced a review of the whistleblowing legal framework. The Government supports the right of staff working in the National Health Service to speak up and raise concerns. There is a range of support and protection in place, including legal protections to prohibit detriment and discrimination against workers and job applicants who have spoken up. The review will examine the effectiveness of the framework in meeting its intended objectives of enabling workers to come forward to speak up about wrongdoing and to protect those who do so against detriment and dismissal.
The Secretary of State has asked the Department and NHS England to explore if introducing ‘Martha’s rule’ would enhance patient safety in England. This could follow Ryan’s rule, established in Queensland, Australia, which allows patients or their families to request a clinical review of their case from a doctor or nurse if their condition is deteriorating or not improving as expected
A formal assessment has not been made of the level of public trust in the safety of neonatal care. NHS England’s Three-Year Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services, published in March 2023, sets out how NHS England will make maternity and neonatal care safer, more personalised, and more equitable for women, babies, and families. The Delivery Plan has provided a clear and co-ordinated direction which will guide maternity services to provide women and families with the care and support they need. There are no plans to do a formal review of the use and access to medicines and equipment in neonatal wards.
On neonatal mortality rates and unexplained deaths, although there are no current plans to launch a nationwide review, the ‘Child Death Review: Statutory and Operational Guidance’ outlines the duties of Child Death Review partners in relation to the processes to be followed when responding to, investigating, and reviewing the death of any child, from any cause. The Child Death Review is a statutory process, which involves a multi-disciplinary child death overview panel to ensure that lessons are learnt from child deaths, that learning is widely shared and actions are taken to reduce preventable child deaths in the future.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support families affected by the Lucy Letby case.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
On 4 September 2023, my Rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced an independent inquiry, to be led by Lady Justice Thirlwall, into the events at the Countess of Chester Hospital and the actions of Lucy Letby. In line with the wishes of the families, this will be a full statutory inquiry established under the Inquiries Act 2005, giving it legal powers to compel witnesses to give evidence under oath.
The Secretary of State ordered the Inquiry on the day of Lucy Letby’s conviction and has made clear that the wishes of the families will remain central to how the inquiry is taken forward to provide the answers they need. The Secretary of State will make a statement on the Inquiry’s terms of reference at the earliest opportunity.
We have asked NHS Resolution to look at compensation and it will work with the families and their representatives to agree an approach which is sympathetic and fair and minimises any further distress. At this time, the police have arrangements in place to appropriately support families impacted, including psychological support and family liaison officers.
We have taken action to improve patient safety and identify warning signs more quickly and will continue to make improvements. In 2019, we introduced medical examiners across England and Wales to independently scrutinise deaths not investigated by a coroner and will now make this a statutory role.
Additionally, the Secretary of State has asked for the Department and NHS England to revisit recommendation 5 of the Kark review, on disbarring senior managers for serious misconduct.
In 2020, NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time programme was expanded to cover neonatal services. It reviewed England’s neonatal services using detailed data and gave trusts individual improvement plans, which they are working towards.
On 27 March 2023, the Government announced a review of the whistleblowing legal framework. The Government supports the right of staff working in the National Health Service to speak up and raise concerns. There is a range of support and protection in place, including legal protections to prohibit detriment and discrimination against workers and job applicants who have spoken up. The review will examine the effectiveness of the framework in meeting its intended objectives of enabling workers to come forward to speak up about wrongdoing and to protect those who do so against detriment and dismissal.
The Secretary of State has asked the Department and NHS England to explore if introducing ‘Martha’s rule’ would enhance patient safety in England. This could follow Ryan’s rule, established in Queensland, Australia, which allows patients or their families to request a clinical review of their case from a doctor or nurse if their condition is deteriorating or not improving as expected
A formal assessment has not been made of the level of public trust in the safety of neonatal care. NHS England’s Three-Year Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services, published in March 2023, sets out how NHS England will make maternity and neonatal care safer, more personalised, and more equitable for women, babies, and families. The Delivery Plan has provided a clear and co-ordinated direction which will guide maternity services to provide women and families with the care and support they need. There are no plans to do a formal review of the use and access to medicines and equipment in neonatal wards.
On neonatal mortality rates and unexplained deaths, although there are no current plans to launch a nationwide review, the ‘Child Death Review: Statutory and Operational Guidance’ outlines the duties of Child Death Review partners in relation to the processes to be followed when responding to, investigating, and reviewing the death of any child, from any cause. The Child Death Review is a statutory process, which involves a multi-disciplinary child death overview panel to ensure that lessons are learnt from child deaths, that learning is widely shared and actions are taken to reduce preventable child deaths in the future.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will undertake a review of the use of non disclosure agreements in the NHS.
Answered by Will Quince
We do not have any current plans to undertake a review of the use of non-disclosure agreements in the National Health Service. Confidentiality clauses used within any such agreements can have a legal and legitimate purpose in helping to resolve workplace disputes or end a working relationship by mutual agreement. Our policy and NHS guidance has been consistently clear that employers must not use confidentiality clauses which attempt to prevent employees from whistleblowing or discussing matters that might compromise the quality and safety of patient care or the safety and wellbeing of employees.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to review the reports of all whistleblowing investigations undertaken by his Department in the last 10 years to identify any recurring themes or issues.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Department regularly reviews the whistleblowing cases it receives and, in each case, decides what the appropriate action is to take. The Department also conducts an annual review of whistleblowing as part of a Cabinet Office process to record and report on whistleblowing cases.