Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
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 increase the number of care home staff; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Gillian Keegan - Secretary of State for Education
We are assisting adult social care providers to recruit care staff such as those in care homes, including through the £462.5 million Workforce Recruitment and Retention Funds, which also supported existing care workers through the winter. In addition, we have expanded the Health and Care Visa to include care workers, care assistants and home carers for a 12-month period and these roles have been added to the Shortage Occupations List.
The latest phase of national recruitment campaign between November and March 2022 aimed to shift perceptions of the adult social care sector and was delivered in partnership with the sector through TV, radio and digital advertising. The recent ‘People at the Heart of Care’ white paper announced that we will invest at least £500 million to develop and support the workforce over the next three years.
Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate he has made of the (a) number and (b) proportion of patients in acute hospitals in England who are medically fit for discharge; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Gillian Keegan - Secretary of State for Education
On 20 March 2022, the most recent data available, there were 12,235 patients or 14.72% remaining in hospital who were medically fit for discharge.
Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 9 November 2021 to Question 62570, what assessment he has made of the progress of the Renal Services Transformation Programme against its aim of all units providing home therapies to at least 20 per cent of patients.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
There has been no further assessment of progress on the percentage of patients receiving home therapies at each unit since November 2021. Reporting on patients receiving home therapies at each unit providing home therapy is undertaken via the Renal Registry Annual Data collection. Data is received in the summer following the year of the collection period.
Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
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 annual cost to the NHS per patient for (a) in-centre haemodialysis, (b) home haemodialysis, and (c) home peritoneal dialysis.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The average annual cost per patient for in-centre haemodialysis, home haemodialysis and home peritoneal dialysis in England is shown in the following table.
In-centre haemodialysis (three cycles per week) | £24,726 |
Home haemodialysis (three to four cycles per week) | £25,116 |
Home peritoneal dialysis (six cycles per week) | £21,216 |
Notes:
Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
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 impact of rising fuel prices on the gas and energy bills of people receiving dialysis treatment at home.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
No assessment has been made. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy is responsible for monitoring the energy market in the United Kingdom to ensure it meets the need of all consumers, including those receiving medical treatment at home.
Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether it is his policy that £50m for targeted MND research will be awarded in full to the scientific programme set out in the submission by MND charities to the 2021 Spending Review.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
This funding can be accessed through applications to the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). The NIHR and UKRI rely on researchers submitting high-quality applications to access funding. All applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.
Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the estimated cost of providing free lateral flow tests following the Government's lifting of general covid-19 restrictions; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Maggie Throup
We are currently undertaking an assessment of these costs.
Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
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 help reduce the time it takes for people suffering from cancer to receive essential medical appointments; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Department and the National Health Service (NHS) have published the Delivery Plan for Tackling the COVID-19 Backlog of Elective Care. This plan sets out a clear vision for how the NHS will recover and expand elective services over the next three years.
To support elective recovery the Government plans to spend more than £8 billion from 2022/23 to 2024/25, this is in addition to the £2 billion Elective Recovery Fund and £700 million Targeted Investment Fund already made available to systems this year to help drive up and protect elective activity.
The ambitions for patients are supported with a clear plan to deliver £9 million additional treatments and diagnostic procedures over the next three years and around 30% more elective activity by 2024/25 than before the pandemic.
Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
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 increase the number of places available in care homes; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Gillian Keegan - Secretary of State for Education
Local authorities are best placed to understand and plan the care and support needs of their local population. Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are required to shape their local markets, to ensure a diverse range of high quality, sustainable, person-centred care and support services are available to meet the needs of the local population.
The number of overall care home beds has remained broadly constant over the last 10 years from 460,664 beds in 2010 to 457,516 in February 2022. The number of home care agencies in England has increased since 2010. There are over 5,000 more home care agencies now, from 5,780 in 2010 to 11,106 in February 2022. This reflects the growing trend towards caring for people in their own homes, enabling people to live independently, within their community, for as long as possible.
Asked by: Laurence Robertson (Conservative - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support his Department provides to people with disabilities who are unable to self-administer covid-19 lateral flow tests; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Maggie Throup
We provide a range of testing instructions in accessible formats and we are procuring lateral flow device (LFD) test kits which are easier to administer, based on feedback from users. Those who are unable to self-administer nine LFD tests unaided can access guidance from a trained operative at asymptomatic test sites located in many towns and cities. Following a successful pilot conducted with a diverse set of visually-impaired volunteers, an expanded 119 Be My Eyes service will be available from the end of January 2022, helping to support people to self-test independently and accurately using a LFD test kit.