Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to (a) increase stocks and (b) prevent shortages of triamcinolone hexacetonide injections.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
We are aware of a shortage of triamcinolone hexacetonide 20 milligram/1 millilitre suspension for injection ampoules, which has been caused by the supplier experiencing manufacturing issues. We are liaising with the supplier of this product to ensure that action is taken to resolve this issue, as quickly as possible.
We have issued communications to healthcare professionals, providing guidance and advice on how to manage patients during the shortage. We have also been liaising with the British Society of Rheumatology, to keep them updated on the supply position. We have well-established procedures and tools for managing medicine supply issues, whatever the cause, and we work closely with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the pharmaceutical industry, the National Health Service and others operating in the supply chain to help prevent shortages and to ensure that the risks to patients are minimised when shortages do arise.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the potential reasons for the increase in people accessing alcohol support services post-covid.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom
There are several potential reasons for the 2% increase in people attending alcohol-only treatment in 2022/23, the period for which the most recent data is available.
In December 2021, the Government published its landmark 10-year drug strategy, backed by record funding. Although the primary focus of the strategy is drugs, commissioning and delivery of drug and alcohol treatment services are integrated in England. This means that implementation of the strategy is also benefitting people seeking alcohol treatment, through mechanisms such as new commissioning standards and plans to build back the workforce. £532 million of additional funding is being invested in local authority commissioned substance misuse treatment services in England between 2022/23 and 2024/25, to increase the number of people in substance misuse treatment by 54,500 over this period.
Additionally, the 2021 Public Health England publication, Monitoring alcohol consumption and harm during the COVID-19 pandemic, found that increases in alcohol consumption since the beginning of the pandemic tended to be among people who were already heavy drinkers before this period. This report is available at the following link:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/60f01076d3bf7f568a2d93e3/Alcohol_and_COVID_report.pdf
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress she has made on implementing the recommendations of Baroness Hollins' report entitled Independent Care (Education) and Treatment Reviews: final report, published on 8 November 2023.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Work is underway to implement recommendations in Baroness Hollins’ final report and to improve outcomes for people with a learning disability and autistic people through reducing use of restrictive practices.
The HOPE(S) training programme, which aims to embed good practice across inpatient services and reduce the use of long-term segregation and restrictive practices, is in place, currently piloted until 2024, and will be independently evaluated.
The programme of independent reviews will continue, now led by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), to preserve regulatory oversight and support people to less restrictive settings and discharge to the community. CQC are finalising their methodology, quality, and governance processes.
Progress is also being made on proposals to make changes to the CQC regulations, which would be subject to Parliamentary approval, to improve reporting and notifications by providers to CQC on use of restrictive practices.
Additionally, NHS England’s Mental Health, Learning Disability and Autism Inpatient Quality Transformation Programme was established in 2022 and aims to make improvements in quality and safety, so that patients experience good and meaningful care. This programme is backed by £36 million investment over three years.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she expects the Adult Senior Intervenors pilot project evaluation report to be published.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
The Adult Senior Intervenors project, initially funded until March 2022, has been extended to ensure those individuals who have a Senior Intervenor continue receiving an intervention. Following the successful impacts of the model, NHS England is now working to embed the approach in a sustainable way across England. This has been supported by the evaluation. We do not intend to publish an evaluation report.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of expanding the swap to stop scheme to include smoking cessation products such as nicotine replacement therapies.
Answered by Neil O'Brien - Shadow Minister (Policy Renewal and Development)
The Swap to Stop programme has been developed to provide smokers with more choice by providing the option of accessing free vapes to support quit attempts. This offer includes expert support provided by local stop smoking services.
Medicinally licensed nicotine replacement therapies are already available to smokers via prescription or voucher. Stop smoking service data suggests that 69% of 176,566 stop smoking service users accessed licensed nicotine replacement therapy in 2022/23. Whilst there is not currently a medicinally licensed vape, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency stands ready to support a future medicinally licensed vaping product should industry come forward with a successful candidate.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
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 potential merits of extending prescribing rights for stop smoking medicines to (a) dentists, (b) opticians and (c) specialist nurses.
Answered by Will Quince
On 4 October 2023, as part of the Prime Minister’s smokefree generation announcement, the Government also announced an additional £70 million of funding per year to local stop smoking services to help even more people to quit smoking. Local authorities will work with a range of local partners to deliver this. The announcement is available at the following link:
Dentists are all qualified prescribers. Several health professions can undertake training to independently prescribe including nurses and optometrists. This allows healthcare professionals who have the necessary skills and experience to prescribe within their area of professional competence. These professionals would need to have the necessary skills in prescribing nicotine replacement therapy and have been commissioned to provide the service.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Royal College of Radiologists report Clinical Radiology Workforce Census 2022, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of that report's findings on the number of consultant paediatric interventional radiology posts in (a) the UK and (b) outside London.
Answered by Will Quince
The Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) report ‘Clinical Radiology Workforce Census 2022’, published on 8 June 2023, reported that the total interventional radiology workforce grew by 15 whole time equivalent consultants, representing a 2% growth, and that there was a decrease by one consultant in paediatric interventional radiology posts.
Although the Department has not undertaken a formal assessment of the RCR report, it is already taking steps to expand the clinical radiology workforce through funding commitments and has made significant progress since investment. As of March 2023, there were 3,678 full-time equivalent consultants working in the clinical radiology specialism in National Health Service trusts and integrated care boards in England. This is an increase of 174 (5.0%) since last year and 1,404 (61.8%) since March 2010.
The Government has funded an additional 20 Specialty Training year six places for interventional radiologists in 2021/22 and 2022/23. Additionally, Health Education England (HEE) have recently started a new training pathway allowing trainees to start training in interventional radiology at Speciality Training year 1, directly from the foundation year.
In January 2023, HEE announced that nearly 900 additional medical specialty training posts have been created for this year, including more than 500 in the key areas of mental health and cancer treatment.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to take steps to review the NHS Business Services Authority policy on prescription penalty charges.
Answered by Neil O'Brien - Shadow Minister (Policy Renewal and Development)
We have no current plans to make a review. NHS Penalty Charge Notices are issued in accordance with the National Health Service (Penalty Charge) Regulations 1999.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
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 increase the equality of access to paediatric interventional radiology services; and if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of those steps on (a) survival rates and (b) life-long health complications for children eligible for this care.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The Surgery in Children Clinical Reference Group (CRG) provides clinical leadership and advice to NHS England and the Surgery in Children Operational Delivery Group, including on paediatric imaging and interventional radiology.
The issues linked to the concerns raised about access to interventional radiology are to be presented to the Women and Children’s Programme of Care Steering Group on the 28 June 2023, discussed at the Surgery in Children Clinical Reference Group meeting on 14 July and will also be presented to the Surgery in Children Operational Delivery Networks to incorporate into their respective network work programmes during 2023/24.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to take steps to ensure that paediatric interventional radiology service policies are in place for all hospitals that provide paediatric services.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The Surgery in Children Clinical Reference Group (CRG) provides clinical leadership and advice to NHS England and the Surgery in Children Operational Delivery Group, including on paediatric imaging and interventional radiology.
The issues linked to the concerns raised about access to interventional radiology are to be presented to the Women and Children’s Programme of Care Steering Group on the 28 June 2023, discussed at the Surgery in Children Clinical Reference Group meeting on 14 July and will also be presented to the Surgery in Children Operational Delivery Networks to incorporate into their respective network work programmes during 2023/24.