Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to take steps to ensure that (a) NHS (i) guidance and (ii) resources on HIV and infant feeding follow British HIV Association guidelines and (b) trusts, (c) boards and (d) local authorities provide (A) tailored and (B) specialist lactation support to women with HIV that (1) is informed by evidence and (2) avoids stigma.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to ending new HIV transmissions in England by 2030 and is developing the new HIV Action Plan, which we aim to publish this year. The plan’s key objectives will include ensuring equitable access and uptake of HIV prevention programmes, improving quality of life for people living with HIV, and addressing stigma, and we are also considering how best to ensure mothers living with HIV can feed their children.
Whilst guidelines issued by professional bodies such as the British HIV Association are highly regarded in the provision of HIV care, these are non-mandated and it is the responsibility of local authorities to decide how best to implement the recommendations, in line with the needs of their local populations. The Government will continue to support local authorities through advice and guidance, informed by evidence, to ensure they provide the best possible HIV services to everyone and avoid stigma.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people in (a) his Department and (b) NHS England worked on the 10 year plan.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
66 people from the Department and NHS England were solely employed on the development of the 10-Year Health Plan. In addition, a wide range of people across both organisations have been involved as part of their regular work.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to ensure that (a) families and (b) carers of cell therapy patients can access (i) mental health and wellbeing and (ii) bereavement support.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to ensuring that families and carers have the support they need.
Local authorities have duties to support people caring for their family and friends. The Care Act 2014 requires local authorities to deliver a wide range of sustainable, high-quality care and support services, including mental health and wellbeing support for families and carers.
The Government also recognises how important it is for grieving families and friends who have lost loved ones to have access to the support they need, when they need it. Bereavement support is commissioned locally, to meet the needs of the local population. NHS England has developed guidance for integrated care boards which requires local commissioners to ensure there is sufficient access to bereavement support services.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
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 ensure that the rollout of whole genome sequencing services is (a) efficient and (b) consistent between regions.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Genomic testing in the National Health Service in England is provided through the NHS Genomic Medicine Service (GMS) and is delivered by a national network of seven NHS Genomic Laboratory Hubs (GLHs). The NHS GLHs deliver testing as directed by the National Genomic Test Directory, including both whole genome sequencing (WGS) and non-WGS testing, and sets out the eligibility criteria for patients to access testing.
NHS England, supported by a Genomics Clinical Reference Group and expert Test Evaluation Working Groups, review the test directory to keep pace with scientific and technological advances, while delivering value for money for the NHS. A robust and evidence-based process and policy is in place to ensure that genomic testing continues to be available for all patients for whom it would be of clinical benefit. As part of the NHS GMS testing strategy, there is increasing use of cutting edge, high throughput comprehensive sequencing technologies to ensure efficiency.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to provide psychological support for patients with (a) sickle cell and (b) other non-malignant conditions considering stem cell transplants.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England stipulates in the blood and marrow transplantation (BMT) service specification that BMT services, which include stem cell transplants, should ensure that there is a full range of psychological support, as well as support staff including social workers, physiotherapy, pharmacy, and radiology support for stem cell transplant recipients. BMT service providers are also expected to be accredited by the Joint Accreditation Committee of the International Society for Cellular Therapy and the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation, known jointly as JACIE, and the requirement for psychology support staff is also reflected in the eighth edition of the JACIE standards.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the number of hours spent by (a) his Department and (b) Baroness Casey’s review team on the review since (a) 5 July 2024 and (b) 3 January 2025.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
This information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many times he has met Baroness Casey since (a) 5 July 2024 and (b) 3 January 2025.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, engages with Baroness Louise Casey regularly on a number of issues, including adult social care.
The commission is independent, and Baroness Casey has the autonomy to define her own engagement plans, including with ministers, based on what she believes is most appropriate for the commission’s work.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that NHS podiatry services in Mid Sussex constituency are adequately resourced.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service podiatry and orthotics service provided by the Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust is made up of registered podiatrists, orthotists, nurses, and health care assistants who provide a comprehensive foot health service to adults and children across West Sussex and Brighton and Hove.
The service works with general practice (GP) services if prescriptions are required, and with local hospital trusts to provide treatment for patients who need specialist support.
To access the service an individual will need to be referred by their GP, a nurse, or an allied health professional. Children also need to be referred by a healthcare professional which may be a GP, a dentist, a school nurse, or community and specialist nurse. All referrals are assessed on the day of receipt and if a case is urgent, the service will contact the person within 48 hours to book an appointment.
Most appointments are face to face but they do offer home visits if a patient is housebound and meets set criteria. Some appointments can be performed via a telephone consultation.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning the majority of health and care services, including podiatry services in England. ICBs arrange healthcare services to meet the needs of their local population within the available resources, and to reduce inequalities in access to, and outcomes from, healthcare services.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
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 number of podiatrists; and if he will (a) reinstate full student bursaries and (b) introduce incentives to encourage recruitment and retention in (i) underserved areas and (ii) general.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has no plans to reinstate the bursary for podiatry students, however the Government keeps funding arrangements for all healthcare students under close review.
Supplementary financial support is available to podiatry students through the NHS Learning Support Fund (LSF). The LSF offers non-repayable funding, in addition to maintenance and tuition fee loans provided by the Student Loans Company. This includes a non-repayable training grant of £5,000 per academic year plus an additional specialist subject payment of £1,000 a year for podiatry students, and where eligible, £2,000 per year for students with childcare responsibilities.
We will publish a 10 Year Workforce Plan to ensure the National Health Service has the right people, in the right places, with the right skills to care for patients when they need it.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to include Chronic UTIs in the (a) 10-year Health Strategy and (b) next iteration of the Women’s Health Strategy.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Plan will set out how we tackle the inequities that lead to poor health. This will include how we will improve access to, and the experience of care for, conditions such as chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs). More tests and scans delivered in the community, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all support people to manage their conditions, including chronic UTIs, closer to home.
We are aware that recurrent UTIs are more prevalent in women. The Government is committed to prioritising women’s health as we build a National Health Service fit for the future, and our focus is on turning the commitments in the Women's Health Strategy into tangible actions to improve health for women.