Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
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 adequacy of training of frontline NHS staff on (a) the definition of domestic abuse, (b) how professionals should respond to immediate and long-term risk and (c) the opportunity of perpetrator incarceration in engaging and safeguarding victims in the long term.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
All National Health Service staff complete mandatory safeguarding training, which includes a focus on domestic abuse. This training gives staff the skills and knowledge to identify and respond to all forms of domestic abuse, as set out in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, which includes physical or sexual abuse, violent or threatening behaviour, controlling or coercive behaviour, economic abuse, psychological, emotional, or other abuse. All professionals are trained to identify the immediate and long-term risks of domestic abuse using blended learning methods including e-learning, in-person training, and supervision. Patient facing clinicians and staff complete more detailed mandatory safeguarding training, including further domestic abuse training relevant to their role. National mandatory safeguarding training for all NHS staff is being strengthened for launch in early 2026. This will reinforce the safeguarding responsibilities of staff and will support them in identifying and responding to victims of abuse.
We are committed to making sure that those who have experienced violence and abuse can access the support they need, to manage short and long-term risk. We also know that for many survivors, the emotional and psychological aftermath can last long after the abuse itself ends and the perpetrator is incarcerated. Mental health support is one of the vital parts of the road to recovery. Anyone in England experiencing a mental health crisis, including domestic abuse and assault victims, can speak to a trained NHS professional at any time of the day through the mental health option on NHS 111. In addition, the 8,500 mental health workers we are recruiting will be trained to support people experiencing mental health challenges, including those who have experienced violence and abuse. The NHS is also piloting more specialised support and has launched local pathfinder projects for enhanced trauma-informed mental health support for survivors with the most complex needs.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of training (a) modules and (b) courses on domestic abuse undertaken by frontline staff were (i) standalone and (ii) integrated with other training programmes broken down by discipline of staff.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Health professionals are trained to identify and respond to domestic abuse using blended learning methods including e-learning, in-person training, and supervision.
It is the responsibility of the employer to ensure that staff complete mandatory safeguarding training, which includes a focus on domestic abuse. Level 1 mandatory safeguarding training for all staff is captured on the Electronic Staff Record (ESR). Each National Health Service provider holds its own ESR data which is not collated nationally, and therefore the Department does not hold the information requested. Staff will undertake further domestic abuse training relevant to their role.
National mandatory safeguarding training for all NHS staff is being strengthened for launch in early 2026. This will reinforce the safeguarding responsibilities of staff and will support them in identifying and responding to victims of abuse.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social care, whether he has held recent discussions with the African Diaspora Malaria Initiative partnership.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK Health Security Agency and the Malaria Reference Laboratory work closely together and are in regular communication with the African Diaspora Malaria Initiative. The initiative is a diaspora-led charitable initiative whose primary objective is the eradication of malaria in the United Kingdom’s African diaspora.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to the NHS of treating patients who have contracted malaria in each of the last five years.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
This information is not held centrally. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) holds data on all malaria cases diagnosed in the United Kingdom by the Malaria Reference Laboratory and Public Health Scotland. The UKHSA publishes annual reports on malaria in the UK, which are available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/malaria-in-the-uk-annual-report
The UKHSA does not collect data on the cost to the National Health Service of treating patients who have contracted malaria.
NHS England captures and publishes aggregated costs, the average unit cost of providing defined services to NHS patients in England, and patient-level costs, a cost based on the specific interactions a patient has and the events related to their healthcare activity, with further information available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/costing-in-the-nhs/national-cost-collection/
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to the NHS of treating patients who have contracted tuberculosis in each of the last five years.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
This information is not held centrally. NHS England captures and publishes aggregated costs, namely the average unit cost of providing defined services to NHS patients in England, and patient-level costs/PLICS, a cost based on the specific interactions a patient has, and the events related to their healthcare activity, which are available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/costing-in-the-nhs/national-cost-collection/
This provides cost information about patients who have been admitted to a hospital for treatment with a primary diagnosis of tuberculosis, rather than patients who have contracted tuberculosis in the last five years.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many admissions there have been to hospital due to (a) treatment-resistant tuberculosis and (b) complications from treatment-resistant tuberculosis in each of the last five years; and what proportion of those admissions were due to tuberculosis contracted outside of the UK.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are no International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes in the Hospital Episode Statistics database that would allow treatment-resistant tuberculosis and complications from treatment-resistant tuberculosis to be identified. ICD-10 codes are used to classify and identify diagnoses.
The UK Health Security Agency uses epidemiological tools, such as whole genome sequencing, to better understand the transmission of tuberculosis. However, it is not possible to determine the proportion of the individuals admitted to hospital who contracted tuberculosis outside of the United Kingdom.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that opportunities to talk about future travel plans are being taken up with people potentially susceptible to contracting malaria (a) at new patient checks, (b) at childhood immunisation appointments and (c) outside a specific travel health consultation.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK Health Security Agency publishes malaria-specific migrant health guidance for healthcare practitioners. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/malaria-migrant-health-guide
This calls for all practitioners to raise awareness of the risk of malaria by asking non-United Kingdom born patients from malarious countries whether they will be returning home to visit friends and relatives, and to advise how and when they should seek travel advice. The guidance reinforces that anyone visiting a malarious area can become infected regardless of age, sex, ethnicity, or country of birth, and that malaria is particularly dangerous for pregnant women.
Travellers are advised to get advice before they travel to areas where malaria is found. Pre-travel health services are available from private travel clinics, pharmacies, and some general practices. Further information on the pre travel health services that are available can be found at the following link:
There are no current plans to ensure that opportunities to talk about future travel plans are being taken up with people that are potentially susceptible to contracting malaria at new patient checks or childhood immunisation appointments, or outside of specific travel health consultations.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that malaria cases reported to the Malaria Reference Laboratory are also notified to a proper officer.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Malaria is designated as a notifiable disease under the Health Protection (Notification) Regulations 2010, which places a statutory duty on all registered medical practitioners in England to notify a proper officer if they treat a patient they know, or suspect to be, infected with malaria. Further information on the Health Protection (Notification) Regulations 2010 is available at the following link:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2010/659/contents
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) produces guidance for medical practitioners to support their compliance with these regulations, with further information available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/notifiable-diseases-and-how-to-report-them
A malaria-specific report form is used by health professionals to refer suspected cases to the Malaria Reference Laboratory at the UKHSA. The UKHSA acts as the proper officer for receiving notifications of suspected and confirmed malaria cases in England. Equivalent notification regulations are in place in the devolved administrations, with further information on the notification regulations for Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland available, respectively, at the following three links:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2008/5/schedule/1
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/wsi/2010/1546/contents
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisr/2022/181/made
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that UK visitors to malaria-infected countries are aware of the need to take chemoprophylaxis effectively.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK Health Security Agency undertakes proactive communications with the public to raise awareness of the risk of malaria and to promote consultation with an appropriate healthcare professional before travel. Further information is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/travel-associated-infections-approaching-pre-pandemic-levels
Travellers to malaria-endemic areas are encouraged to have a pre-travel consultation with a healthcare expert in travel health. This enables an individualised risk assessment and personalised advice to be given on measures to reduce the risk of malaria and other health risks.
The National Travel Health Network and Centre provides information for United Kingdom travellers on safe and healthy travel and effective strategies to prevent infection, including chemoprophylaxis. Further information is available at the following link:
https://travelhealthpro.org.uk/factsheet/52/malaria
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many admissions there have been to hospital due to (a) tuberculosis and (b) complications from tuberculosis in each of the last five years; and what proportion of those admissions were due to tuberculosis contracted outside of the UK.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
This information is not held centrally. NHS England collects and publishes data on the causes of hospital admissions, however there is no routine reporting on tuberculosis admissions. NHS England makes hospital admission data available in the National Health Service’s Hospital Episode Statistics publication, which is available at the following link:
https://digital.nhs.uk/services/hospital-episode-statistics
The UK Health Security Agency uses epidemiological tools, such as whole genome sequencing, to better understand the transmission of tuberculosis. However, it is not possible to determine the proportion of the individuals admitted to hospital who contracted tuberculosis outside of the United Kingdom.