Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the effect of charging VAT on the installation, repair or replacement of heating systems in the homes of people with (a) Parkinson's and (b) other progressive conditions in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The Secretary of State for Health has had no discussion with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the effect of charging VAT on the installation, repair or replacement of heating systems in the homes of people with Parkinson's and other progressive conditions in the last 12 months.
Public Health England has published the Cold Weather Plan for England 2013 which identifies a range of groups at greater risk of harm from cold weather and appropriate actions for those working with these groups to take. Although there is no specific guidance for people with Parkinson’s, individuals with this condition may be included within these at-risk groups.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the reduction of avoidable harm by better medicines reconciliation for hospital patients with Parkinson's.
Answered by Norman Lamb
The Department has made no such assessment.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) issued joint guidance, Technical patient safety solutions for medicines reconciliation on admission of adults to hospital in December 2007, which aims to reduce medication errors, which occur most commonly on transfer between care settings and on admission to hospital. This guidance applies to all patients, including those with Parkinson's disease and is available at:
www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/live/11897/38560/38560.pdf
The NPSA also issued a Rapid Response Report on Reducing harm from omitted and delayed medicines in hospital in February 2010. This makes reference to medicines where timeliness of administration is crucial, including those for Parkinson's disease. This is available at:
www.nrls.npsa.nhs.uk/alerts/?entryid45=66720
NICE, the NPSA and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society have all identified the key role of pharmacists in medicines reconciliation and the majority of hospitals now have pharmacists on admission wards to help ensure patients' medicines are reconciled promptly.
A strong reporting culture, where safety incidents are reported and monitored is essential to improving safety for all patients, including those with Parkinson's disease. NHS England and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency jointly issued two patient safety alerts on 20 March 2014 to help healthcare providers increase incident reporting for medication errors and medical devices. The alerts instruct providers to take specific steps that will improve data reporting quality; and will see the establishment of national networks to maximise learning and provide guidance on minimising harm relating to these incident types.
The measures announced by my Rt Hon Friend, the Secretary of State for Health on 26 March, as part of his invitation to NHS organisations to ‘Sign up to Safety', are also likely to lead to an increase in the number of reported incidents of harm in the National Health Service even though care will be getting safer.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the online system for members of the public to compare hospitals on the basis of safety indicators will include information on cases in which patients with conditions such as Parkinson's have not received their medication on time; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Dan Poulter
We are working with NHS England to prepare for the publication on NHS Choices of an extended set of patient safety indicators later this year. These indicators are being gathered together in a manner that will allow patients to compare local hospitals on the basis of a more rounded picture of safety performance than has been previously available in one place. The initial focus of this presentation will be on indicators that are relevant to the general population of hospital inpatients and for which information is available. There is not currently, to our knowledge, a suitable source of data regarding delayed medication for those being treated for diseases such as Parkinson's.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to improve reporting of instances in which the medication regimes of hospital patients with Parkinson's are disrupted through delays or errors in medicines reconciliation; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Norman Lamb
The Department has made no such assessment.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) issued joint guidance, Technical patient safety solutions for medicines reconciliation on admission of adults to hospital in December 2007, which aims to reduce medication errors, which occur most commonly on transfer between care settings and on admission to hospital. This guidance applies to all patients, including those with Parkinson's disease and is available at:
www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/live/11897/38560/38560.pdf
The NPSA also issued a Rapid Response Report on Reducing harm from omitted and delayed medicines in hospital in February 2010. This makes reference to medicines where timeliness of administration is crucial, including those for Parkinson's disease. This is available at:
www.nrls.npsa.nhs.uk/alerts/?entryid45=66720
NICE, the NPSA and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society have all identified the key role of pharmacists in medicines reconciliation and the majority of hospitals now have pharmacists on admission wards to help ensure patients' medicines are reconciled promptly.
A strong reporting culture, where safety incidents are reported and monitored is essential to improving safety for all patients, including those with Parkinson's disease. NHS England and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency jointly issued two patient safety alerts on 20 March 2014 to help healthcare providers increase incident reporting for medication errors and medical devices. The alerts instruct providers to take specific steps that will improve data reporting quality; and will see the establishment of national networks to maximise learning and provide guidance on minimising harm relating to these incident types.
The measures announced by my Rt Hon Friend, the Secretary of State for Health on 26 March, as part of his invitation to NHS organisations to ‘Sign up to Safety', are also likely to lead to an increase in the number of reported incidents of harm in the National Health Service even though care will be getting safer.