Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the impact of vacancy rates and (2) of frontline social care and support staff turnover on (a) the quality of care that those in receipt of social care receive and (b) the ability of social care providers to deliver high quality care, following the publication of the Who Cares Wins Report by Community Integrated Care in March.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has made no assessment of the impact of vacancy rates and of frontline social care and support staff turnover on the quality of care that those in receipt of social care receive, or on the ability of social care providers to deliver high quality care.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in light of the report Who Cares Wins published by Community Integrated Care in March, what assessment they have made of how improving pay for front-line care and support workers would reduce vacancy rates and staff turnover in the care sector to the average within the NHS; and whether they will develop a plan for parity of pay between front-line care and support workers in the social care sector and equivalent roles in the NHS.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Dissolution. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what implications the statement by Bakr Ahmed Bakr Qanita that Hamas is using the management building, the specialist building and the maternity ward at al-Shifa hospital in Gaza will have for their policies in the region.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Hamas and other terrorist organisations are putting Palestinian civilians at grave risk by embedding themselves in the civilian population and civilian infrastructure. The UK is aware of reports of Hamas and other terrorist organisations using healthcare facilities and other infrastructure, such as schools, as bases and command nodes.
This does not absolve parties from their responsibility to ensure that their actions are compliant with International Humanitarian Law, and minimise harm to civilians. The UK is particularly clear that civilian buildings must not be targeted, and extra care must be taken in relation to hospitals and other medical facilities.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what implications the statement by Nabeel Rajab Abed Shteiwi that Palestinian Islamic Jihad is using al-Shifa hospital and schools as shelter will have for their policies in the region.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Hamas and other terrorist organisations are putting Palestinian civilians at grave risk by embedding themselves in the civilian population and civilian infrastructure. The UK is aware of reports of Hamas and other terrorist organisations using healthcare facilities and other infrastructure, such as schools, as bases and command nodes.
This does not absolve parties from their responsibility to ensure that their actions are compliant with International Humanitarian Law, and minimise harm to civilians. The UK is particularly clear that civilian buildings must not be targeted, and extra care must be taken in relation to hospitals and other medical facilities.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to comments by the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department of Health and Social Care in the Sunday Express on 20 August 2023, when they plan to publish details on ways to establish more fracture liaison services.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Fracture liaison services (FLS) are commissioned by integrated care boards which are well placed to make decisions according to local need. NHS England is supporting requests from health systems to introduce FLS and other secondary fracture prevention services, including through the Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme.
The Government recognises the value of quality-assured secondary fracture prevention services, including Fracture Liaison Services. In the online-only Major Conditions Strategy: Case for change and our strategic framework, we set out that we will look to, together with NHS England, explore supporting the provision of fracture liaison services. The intention is to publish the Major Conditions Strategy early this year.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ask the Royal Osteoporosis Society to establish ‘lived experience’ focus groups for people with Osteoporosis to inform their Major Conditions Strategy; and what plans they have to include the issue of bone fractures in the Strategy.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Major Conditions Strategy will look to tackle the six major condition groups including musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions. In August 2023, we set out our initial plans in the online-only Major Conditions Strategy:Case for change and our strategic framework including that we will look to, together with NHS England, explore supporting the provision of fracture liaison services.
There are no current plans to ask the Royal Osteoporosis Society to establish ‘lived experience’ focus groups for people with Osteoporosis. However, the Department has worked closely with stakeholders to develop the Major Conditions Strategy including people with lived experience and organisations representing patients, carers, and conditions. This includes engagement with the Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance, an umbrella body bringing together patient organisations and professional bodies representing the breadth of MSK health. The development of the strategy has also been informed by the Call for Evidence, which received over 400 responses from both individuals and organisations. Our intention is to publish the Major Conditions Strategy early this year.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the top five causes of (1) disability, and (2) premature death, in England; and how the NHS plans to mitigate or reduce each cause.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study provides a comprehensive picture of mortality and disability across countries, time, age, and sex. It quantifies health loss from hundreds of diseases, injuries, and risk factors, so that health systems can be improved and disparities eliminated.
According to the data for England published by the GBD study in 2019, the top 5 causes of years lived with disability for England were low back pain, diabetes, depressive disorders, headache disorders and falls.
Data for 2022 for England indicates that the five leading causes of death aged under 75 were cancers, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, deaths from external causes, and digestive system diseases.
On the 24 January 2023, we announced our plan to publish the Major Conditions Strategy. This strategy will explore how we can tackle the key drivers of ill-health in England, reduce pressure on the NHS and reduce ill-health related labour market inactivity.
To deliver on these objectives, the strategy will focus on tackling the six major conditions groups – cancers, mental ill-health, cardiovascular disease (including stroke and diabetes), dementia, chronic respiratory diseases, and musculoskeletal disorders – that account for around 60% of ill-health and early death in England.
Focusing on these groups of conditions that contribute most to mortality and morbidity will allow us to focus our efforts on the key actions needed to achieve our Levelling-Up mission to gain five extra years of Healthy Life Expectancy by 2035.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the potential cost savings to (1) the NHS, and (2) employers, in the next 20 years as a result of early detection and treatment of osteoporosis.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have made no estimate of the potential cost savings to the National Health Service, and to employers, in the next 20 years as a result of early detection and treatment of osteoporosis.
Information on the number of working days lost each year that result from bone fractures is not available. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) Sickness absence in the United Kingdom labour market publication is produced from data collected from the Labour Force Survey; however, this survey does not specifically ask the question of sick days taken due to fractures.
A document is attached with tables showing, firstly, the number of deaths where bone fractures were the secondary cause of death, by broad age group and sex, registered between 2014 and 2023 in England and Wales; and secondly, the number of deaths involving bone fractures, by broad age group and sex, registered between 2014 and 2023 in England and Wales.
Government will continue to consider options for further work to support those with osteoporosis and at risk of fractures, including working together with NHS England to explore supporting the provision of fracture liaison service.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimates they have made of the number of (1) deaths and (2) working days lost, each year that result from bone fractures among (a) women, and (b) men.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have made no estimate of the potential cost savings to the National Health Service, and to employers, in the next 20 years as a result of early detection and treatment of osteoporosis.
Information on the number of working days lost each year that result from bone fractures is not available. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) Sickness absence in the United Kingdom labour market publication is produced from data collected from the Labour Force Survey; however, this survey does not specifically ask the question of sick days taken due to fractures.
A document is attached with tables showing, firstly, the number of deaths where bone fractures were the secondary cause of death, by broad age group and sex, registered between 2014 and 2023 in England and Wales; and secondly, the number of deaths involving bone fractures, by broad age group and sex, registered between 2014 and 2023 in England and Wales.
Government will continue to consider options for further work to support those with osteoporosis and at risk of fractures, including working together with NHS England to explore supporting the provision of fracture liaison service.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to announce funding for improved fracture liaison services across England to avoid a postcode lottery relating to early detection of osteoporosis.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Fracture Liaison Services (FLS) are commissioned by integrated care boards (ICBs) which are well placed to make decisions according to local need. NHS England is also supporting requests from health systems to introduce FLS and other secondary fracture prevention services, including through the Falls and Fragility Fracture Audit Programme.
On 24 January 2023, we announced our plan to publish the Major Conditions Strategy. This strategy will explore how we can tackle the key drivers of ill-health in England, reduce pressure on the National Health Service and reduce ill-health related labour market inactivity. The Strategy will focus on six major groups of conditions including musculoskeletal conditions, such as osteoporosis, and will be published early next year.
As stated in the Major Conditions Strategy: Case for change and our strategic framework, the Government will work together with NHS England to explore supporting the provision of fracture liaison services. The framework was published on GOV.UK on 21 August 2023 in an online-only format.