Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
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 implications for the NHS of the use of (a) generative AI and (b) large language models; and whether pilot schemes are underway to assess potential uses.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
New artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are being developed that have the potential to improve healthcare delivery and to provide significant cost savings to the National Health Service. One example is the use of automated voice to text tools, which use generative AI to listen to and transcribe patient notes.
Currently, there are ongoing assessments of the use of these tools in the NHS as these technologies could help ease the administrative burden faced by staff and make systems more efficient. Several NHS trusts are running trials, including a multi-site assessment of the impact of using automated transcription software. The NHS AI team is monitoring these developments and developing guidance for the responsible use of these tools. This guidance will be informed by the Government’s broader guidance on the use of Generative AI in the public sector.
There are strict safeguards in place throughout the NHS to protect data. All providers of services which handle patient data must protect that data in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and Data Protection Act 2018, and every health organisation is required to appoint a Caldicott Guardian to advise on the protection of people’s health and care data, and ensure it is used properly. This includes where AI is used in relation to patient records.
To mitigate the likelihood and severity of any potential harm to individuals arising from use of data in AI, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has developed detailed AI guidance which provides an overarching view of data protection, including Data Protection Impact Assessments and UK GDPR. It has also produced an AI toolkit to support organisations auditing compliance of their AI-based technologies. NHS bodies are expected to make use of this guidance and toolkit.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the most frequent reasons are given by staff for early departure from the NHS in order of frequency.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The information requested on trusts undertaking exit interviews is not held centrally. While exit interviews are recommended in the National Health Service learning handbook, it may not be appropriate for all staff, such as in cases of redundancy or dismissal. An updated, online, self-exit questionnaire was launched in October 2021, which includes staff survey questions and allows staff to explain their reasons for leaving. This is currently being promoted to all NHS trusts and is in use in approximately 83 organisations.
Reasons for leaving are noted in the Electronic Staff Record. Where detailed information for leaving was available, in 2021 the most frequent reasons were retirement; end of fixed term contract; work/life balance; relocation; and pay or reward.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what evidence is used to determine the cause of early departure of staff from the NHS.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The information requested on trusts undertaking exit interviews is not held centrally. While exit interviews are recommended in the National Health Service learning handbook, it may not be appropriate for all staff, such as in cases of redundancy or dismissal. An updated, online, self-exit questionnaire was launched in October 2021, which includes staff survey questions and allows staff to explain their reasons for leaving. This is currently being promoted to all NHS trusts and is in use in approximately 83 organisations.
Reasons for leaving are noted in the Electronic Staff Record. Where detailed information for leaving was available, in 2021 the most frequent reasons were retirement; end of fixed term contract; work/life balance; relocation; and pay or reward.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the findings of exit interviews by NHS Trusts for departing staff are collated centrally.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The information requested on trusts undertaking exit interviews is not held centrally. While exit interviews are recommended in the National Health Service learning handbook, it may not be appropriate for all staff, such as in cases of redundancy or dismissal. An updated, online, self-exit questionnaire was launched in October 2021, which includes staff survey questions and allows staff to explain their reasons for leaving. This is currently being promoted to all NHS trusts and is in use in approximately 83 organisations.
Reasons for leaving are noted in the Electronic Staff Record. Where detailed information for leaving was available, in 2021 the most frequent reasons were retirement; end of fixed term contract; work/life balance; relocation; and pay or reward.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which NHS Trusts conduct exit interviews for departing staff.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The information requested on trusts undertaking exit interviews is not held centrally. While exit interviews are recommended in the National Health Service learning handbook, it may not be appropriate for all staff, such as in cases of redundancy or dismissal. An updated, online, self-exit questionnaire was launched in October 2021, which includes staff survey questions and allows staff to explain their reasons for leaving. This is currently being promoted to all NHS trusts and is in use in approximately 83 organisations.
Reasons for leaving are noted in the Electronic Staff Record. Where detailed information for leaving was available, in 2021 the most frequent reasons were retirement; end of fixed term contract; work/life balance; relocation; and pay or reward.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish the number of days spent in hospital by people medically fit for discharge in each month since January 2020.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
This information is not held in the format requested. The delayed transfer of care data collection was paused in March 2020 to support the National Health Service response to COVID-19.
Since 9 December 2021, NHS England and NHS Improvement have published data with daily figures of patients remaining in hospital who no longer meet the criteria to reside for inpatient care in acute hospitals in England. The attached table shows the average number of patients who did not meet the criteria to reside and were not discharged in each month from November 2021 to March 2022 by NHS trust.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average number of patients awaiting discharge in each month since January 2020 was, by NHS Trust.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
This information is not held in the format requested. The delayed transfer of care data collection was paused in March 2020 to support the National Health Service response to COVID-19.
Since 9 December 2021, NHS England and NHS Improvement have published data with daily figures of patients remaining in hospital who no longer meet the criteria to reside for inpatient care in acute hospitals in England. The attached table shows the average number of patients who did not meet the criteria to reside and were not discharged in each month from November 2021 to March 2022 by NHS trust.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what incentives are available to encourage NHS dentists to practice in areas with unmet dental need.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
NHS England and NHS Improvement are responsible for commissioning primary dental care services to meet local need. NHS England and NHS Improvement are developing proposals for dental system reform, designed with the support of the profession, encouraging improved dental provision in all areas and addressing unmet need.
Health Education England (HEE) is also working with service commissioners to develop National Health Service dental practices to provide more dental foundation training opportunities where access to NHS dentistry is a known issue. Nationally, HEE is reviewing future training posts to ensure an equitable distribution of NHS dentists in England.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of adults in England have accessed NHS dentistry in each year since 2001.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
This information is not available in the format requested. Data is available for the proportion of the adult population seen by a National Health Service dentist in the previous 24 months from 2007 to 2021, to align with the recommended longest interval between dental checks in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s oral and dental health guidance.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has been made of the additional training and administrative cost for EU dentists seeking to work in the NHS beyond that required to enter private practice.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Department has in place a period of continued automatic recognition, allowing European Union (EU) dentists continued ease of registration in the United Kingdom. In order to work in the National Health Service (NHS), dentists must also apply to the Dental Performers List. Holders of non-UK qualifications are required to undertake a foundation training programme before admittance to the performers list, however the exemption for EU applicants remains in place. This means that EU dentists do not currently incur any additional costs to practicing in the NHS than they did previously.