Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps (1) they, and (2) NHS England, plan to take to (a) ensure that children in receipt of the NHS Special Schools Eye Care Service to attend day special schools will continue to benefit from that service, (b) ensure that the NHS Long Term Plan reflects the NHS England pledge to roll out this service to all special schools, and (c) monitor whether all children in special schools are benefiting from this service by January 2024.
Answered by Lord Kamall
The NHS Long Term Plan committed to ensure that children and young people with a learning disability, autism or both in special residential schools have access to eyesight, hearing and dental checks. NHS England commenced a proof-of-concept programme in 2021 to pilot and evaluate a potential service model in residential schools. Once the evaluation is complete, NHS England will develop a model specification for use in special residential schools. The evaluation may result in recommendations for future service provision in day schools. Children in day schools who are unable to attend high street opticians can currently access eye tests in their homes through existing domiciliary services.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address shortages in the dermatology workforce in England; and what assessment they have made of the potential role of (1) tele-dermatology for diagnostic support and triage, (2) GPs, (3) nurses, and (4) pharmacists, in increasing capacity for treatment and monitoring of skin disorder.
Answered by Lord Kamall
Following the 2021 Spending Review, we are increasing the number training posts in dermatology in England by 15, with doctors in postgraduate training in post from August 2022. The National Health Service is also ensuring that patients can access specialist care through dermatology outpatient services. This focuses on a personalised approach for patients waiting for outpatient appointments, improving waiting times and offering choice for patients at the point of referral. Pharmacies can offer clinical advice and over-the-counter medicines for many skin conditions and where appropriate pharmacists can advise the patient to consult a general practitioner (GP), nurse or other healthcare professional.
Many dermatology departments in England now offer a rapid access Teledermatology Advice and Guidance service for GPs to seek advice from a specialist prior to a referral being made. The use of technology, such as digital images, reduces unnecessary face-to-face appointments and provides flexibility for patients when booking outpatient appointments.
A Teledermatology Roadmap for 2020-21 v1.0 provides recommendations on optimising teledermatology triage and specialist advice, including establishing a working group of multidisciplinary clinical leads and other stakeholders. A copy of the Roadmap is attached. The two-week wait skin cancer pathway: innovative approaches to support early diagnosis of skin cancer as part of the NHS COVID-19 recovery plan also includes a new virtual pathway using teledermatology. A copy of the guidance for the skin cancer pathway is attached.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to require (1) calorie, and (2) sugar, content labels on alcoholic drinks.
Answered by Lord Kamall
The Government has announced its intention to consult on whether to introduce mandatory calorie labelling on pre-packed alcohol and alcohol sold in on-trade businesses such as pubs and restaurants. The consultation will also seek views on whether the provision of the United Kingdom Chief Medical Officers’ low risk drinking guidelines should be mandatory or continue on a voluntary basis. Respondents to the consultation can also suggest additional labelling requirements for consideration, such as ingredient listing.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to reduce the number of catheter associated urinary tract infections; and how the effectiveness of those steps will be evaluated.
Answered by Lord Kamall
NHS England and NHS Improvement have established a workstream for urinary tract infections (UTIs) to reduce the prevalence by trialling and implementing interventions which could prevent infections in older people. This includes a series of hydration pilots in England which will evaluate and improve our understanding of which interventions best increase fluid intake in older people and reduce the risk of UTIs. The collection of data within the workstream will enable evaluation of the effectiveness of interventions.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government why the calculated funding allocated for the local clinical excellence awards scheme is not based on all consultants treating patients in the NHS, including clinical academic consultants.
Answered by Lord Kamall
Access to the local clinical excellence award scheme is a contractual entitlement for all consultants employed on the 2003 terms and conditions. The central funding for awards is calculated on this basis. Clinical academics hold honorary contracts with the National Health Service and therefore have no contractual right to the scheme. However, employers continue to be encouraged to include clinical academics in the awards process.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of alcohol on health inequalities; and what steps they are taking to reduce alcohol’s role as a significant driver of health inequalities.
Answered by Lord Kamall
Individuals from lower socioeconomic groups are more likely experience greater levels of alcohol-related harm compared to higher socioeconomic groups, including alcohol-related hospital admissions and deaths. Through the 10-year drug strategy, the Government has invested £532 million into rebuilding local authority commissioned substance misuse treatment services in England. All local areas will receive additional funds through a phased approach according to need, with 50 of the most deprived areas receiving a greater share of the funding in 2022/23. As part of the NHS Long Term Plan, we have invested £27 million to establish specialist Alcohol Care Teams in the 25% of hospitals with the highest rates of alcohol-mortality and deprivation.
Since 2020/21, the Government has also provided £50.4 million to provide substance misuse treatment services for people sleeping rough through the Rough Sleeping Drug and Alcohol Treatment Grant. The Government will provide additional investment of up to £186.5 million during the current Spending Review period, including £15 million announced through the cross-Government drugs strategy.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to amend the definition of the “Declaration of Helsinki” in Schedule 1 to the Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004 to refer to the current version of that Declaration.
Answered by Lord Kamall
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency recently undertook a consultation on changes to the Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004, including Schedule 1. The responses to the consultation are currently being analysed and the response will be published in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to (1) raise the standards, and (2) improve the safety, of the cosmetic surgery industry.
Answered by Lord Kamall
The General Medical Council and the Royal College of Surgeons are developing a cosmetic surgery credential. The credential will set out the expectations of doctors working in this area of practice and strengthen regulation and patient protection by ensuring surgeons have appropriate training, qualifications and experience.
The cosmetic surgery credential will not be mandatory. However, we expect the cosmetic surgery industry to embrace the credential as a way of demonstrating that doctors have the relevant skills and knowledge to deliver safe care to patients. We anticipate the cosmetic surgery credential will be completed in 2023.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to implement a credential for the regulation of cosmetic surgery; and what progress they have made with regard to implementing any such plans.
Answered by Lord Kamall
The General Medical Council and the Royal College of Surgeons are developing a cosmetic surgery credential. The credential will set out the expectations of doctors working in this area of practice and strengthen regulation and patient protection by ensuring surgeons have appropriate training, qualifications and experience.
The cosmetic surgery credential will not be mandatory. However, we expect the cosmetic surgery industry to embrace the credential as a way of demonstrating that doctors have the relevant skills and knowledge to deliver safe care to patients. We anticipate the cosmetic surgery credential will be completed in 2023.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when changes to the National Health Service (Appointment of Consultants) Regulations 1996 will be consulted on; and when these regulations will be amended to include all medical Royal Colleges.
Answered by Lord Kamall
The National Health Service (Appointment of Consultants) Regulations 1996 do not prevent NHS trusts from seeking alternative members to contribute to the process of appointing consultants. The Regulations do provide discretion to involve these Royal Colleges where appropriate and do not apply to foundation trusts, which comprise the majority of trusts.
We are considering the merits of amending the Regulations to include additional Colleges and will provide further details in due course.