Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to outline a timeline for the implementation of Respiratory Syncytial Virus vaccination programmes for infants and older adults; and what plans they have to increase public awareness of the virus.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is engaging the market on its requirements for products that would enable Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) programmes to be implemented for infants and older adults, following advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation in 2023. A final decision on these programmes will be taken following the outcome of this process. If any RSV programmes are agreed to, their implementation will be announced to the public and health professionals in due course.
Whilst population wide immunisation is not currently available, the Government is increasing efforts to minimise the number of severe cases of RSV. This is currently done by a targeted immunisation offer to those known to be at highest risk of severe complications. The National Health Service has also published signs and symptoms of RSV, and advice on when parents should bring their children to seek medical attention. The UK Health Security Agency has also provided public health messaging on social, national, and regional media, highlighting the signs and symptoms of RSV and the steps that can be taken to reduce infections, including reducing risks to young children.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number and diversity of vaccines proceeding through clinical trials, and the resources that will be required to assess their clinical and cost effectiveness in a timely manner.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
As part of its horizon scanning work, the Department works closely with the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to stay abreast of vaccines under development and to factor them into future planning and prioritisation work as appropriate. This includes consideration of the expert and analytical resource that will be required to assess their effectiveness, both clinical and cost. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency also plays a role in considering vaccines proceeding through clinical trials and considers them for licensing as they become ready.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to take forward the recommendation of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to introduce a vaccination programme for chickenpox.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is considering the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s recommendation, published on 14 November 2023, on including a chickenpox programme in the routine immunisation schedule for children.
Potential changes to the immunisation programme need to be carefully scoped, taking into account a number of factors including product procurement, operational challenges and feasibility. The Government will decide whether to introduce a chickenpox programme when that careful work has concluded.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what work they are undertaking with the devolved administrations to extend the commitment to eliminate cervical cancers in all parts of the UK.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England has developed an implementation plan to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040 and will work collaboratively with key partners including National Health Service regions, charities and third sector stakeholders, as well as learning from the approaches being taken across the devolved nations.
NHS England’s plan covers activity for the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination and cervical screening pathways. To support increased access and uptake of the HPV vaccination to school aged children, NHS England continues to work with all key stakeholders at regional level to strengthen local initiatives and encourage innovative models to approach the robust delivery of school aged vaccinations.
An in-service evaluation is being commissioned by the National Institute for Health and Care Research to determine whether HPV self-sampling could be used to improve the NHS Cervical Screening Programme. Screening activity includes a review of the screening information materials, development of IT systems to give insights into behaviours, and a review of the colposcopy services.
Further work is planned to include a general practice opt-in option for trans men and non-binary people, pilot text reminders for all eligible patients, expanding access to a range of locations, and targeted upskilling of workforce.
Health is a devolved matter in Scotland and Wales and a transferred matter in Northern Ireland. While Department officials work closely with their counterparts in the devolved administrations, any decision on commitments on cervical cancer in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are the responsibility of the respective governments in each country.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what implementation plans they are creating following NHS England's pledge to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England has developed an implementation plan to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040 and will work collaboratively with key partners including National Health Service regions, charities and third sector stakeholders, as well as learning from the approaches being taken across the devolved nations.
NHS England’s plan covers activity for the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination and cervical screening pathways. To support increased access and uptake of the HPV vaccination to school aged children, NHS England continues to work with all key stakeholders at regional level to strengthen local initiatives and encourage innovative models to approach the robust delivery of school aged vaccinations.
An in-service evaluation is being commissioned by the National Institute for Health and Care Research to determine whether HPV self-sampling could be used to improve the NHS Cervical Screening Programme. Screening activity includes a review of the screening information materials, development of IT systems to give insights into behaviours, and a review of the colposcopy services.
Further work is planned to include a general practice opt-in option for trans men and non-binary people, pilot text reminders for all eligible patients, expanding access to a range of locations, and targeted upskilling of workforce.
Health is a devolved matter in Scotland and Wales and a transferred matter in Northern Ireland. While Department officials work closely with their counterparts in the devolved administrations, any decision on commitments on cervical cancer in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are the responsibility of the respective governments in each country.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review report First Do No Harm, published on 8 July 2020, what discussions they have had regarding the provision of monetary compensation for people adversely affected by clinical and surgical pelvic mesh.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has asked the Patient Safety Commissioner, Dr Henrietta Hughes, to undertake work looking at redress for people harmed by pelvic mesh and sodium valproate. The work is intended to focus on the views of those affected, improving the understanding of how many people have been affected and how, the case for redress and what form it could take.
The Patient Safety Commissioner office has stated that the report setting out the findings from this work is expected to be published on 7 February this year. The Government will consider the report’s findings before deciding how to proceed on this matter.
The Government published its response to the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety review in July 2021, which did not accept the recommendation to establish a redress agency, this position remains unchanged.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the recommendation for an Independent Redress Agency in the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review report First Do No Harm, published on 8 July 2020.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has asked the Patient Safety Commissioner, Dr Henrietta Hughes, to undertake work looking at redress for people harmed by pelvic mesh and sodium valproate. The work is intended to focus on the views of those affected, improving the understanding of how many people have been affected and how, the case for redress and what form it could take.
The Patient Safety Commissioner office has stated that the report setting out the findings from this work is expected to be published on 7 February this year. The Government will consider the report’s findings before deciding how to proceed on this matter.
The Government published its response to the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety review in July 2021, which did not accept the recommendation to establish a redress agency, this position remains unchanged.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to implement all of the recommendations contained in the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review report First Do No Harm, published on 8 July 2020.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety (IMMDS) Review was clear in its finding that the healthcare system failed to listen to patients’ concerns on the issues covered by the review. The Government’s 2021 response to the review set out which of the review’s recommendations the Government had accepted. We also published an update in an online-only format in December 2022 setting out progress made against those recommendations, which includes appointing the first ever Patient Safety Commissioner in England to champion patients’ voices in relation to the safety of medicines and medical devices. In April 2023, the Government also responded to the recommendations made by the Health and Social Care Committee in its report ‘Follow-up on the IMMDS report and the Government’s response’, published in January 2023. A copy of the follow-up report is attached.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review report First Do No Harm, published on 8 July 2020.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety (IMMDS) Review was clear in its finding that the healthcare system failed to listen to patients’ concerns on the issues covered by the review. The Government’s 2021 response to the review set out which of the review’s recommendations the Government had accepted. We also published an update in an online-only format in December 2022 setting out progress made against those recommendations, which includes appointing the first ever Patient Safety Commissioner in England to champion patients’ voices in relation to the safety of medicines and medical devices. In April 2023, the Government also responded to the recommendations made by the Health and Social Care Committee in its report ‘Follow-up on the IMMDS report and the Government’s response’, published in January 2023. A copy of the follow-up report is attached.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the main causes of surgical fires and burns across NHS England.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Surgical fires and burns occur in, on, or around a patient undergoing surgery. Risk factors include use of ignition sources, for example, electrical surgical equipment and lasers, and fuel sources, for example, alcohol preparation solutions that are accidentally allowed to pool on or under the patient.
Any unexpected or unintended incident which could have or did lead to harm to one or more patients can be recorded on the Learn from Patient Safety Events (LFPSE) service, to support local and national learning. This would include surgical fires or burns. Providers are encouraged to foster a positive safety culture among their staff, and to ensure an appropriate local focus on incident recognition, recording, and response.
Recording onto LFPSE is a voluntary process, except where reporting to NHS England fulfils duties for other statutory mandatory requirements, such as reporting notifiable incidents to the Care Quality Commission (CQC). NHS England shares all such data with the CQC. Notifiable incidents include events resulting in serious harm or the death of a service user, and therefore the most serious surgical fires or burns are subject to mandatory reporting. However, providers are encouraged to record all patient safety incidents, irrespective of the level of harm, to support local and national learning.
We are informed by NHS England that no assessment has been made of the impact of surgical fires or burns on the length of patients' hospital stays.