Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the vaccination rates are for the MMR vaccine in (a) Preston, (b) Lancashire, and (c) the North West.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Official childhood vaccine coverage estimates, including for the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, are published annually by the United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and NHS England, and quarterly by UKHSA. Coverage of childhood vaccines are measured when children reach their first, second and fifth birthdays. Whilst the data for Preston alone is not available, the quarterly vaccine uptake data for Lancashire, which includes Preston, is available. The following table shows the number and percentage of children who received the first MMR vaccine at two and five years old, and the second MMR vaccine at five years old, in the second quarter of 2023/24:
MMR1 at 2 years | MMR1 at 5 years | MMR2 at 5 years | |||
2957 | 91.1% | 3204 | 95.3% | 2947 | 87.7% |
The following table shows the same information for the North West:
MMR1 at 2 years | MMR1 at 5 years | MMR2 at 5 years | |||
19199 | 89.4% | 21412 | 93.7% | 19472 | 85.2% |
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to increase uptake of the MMR vaccine in (a) Preston, (b) Lancashire, and (c) the North West.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
A Lancashire Measles Incident Management Group has been set up to coordinate actions across Lancashire. This is chaired by the Director of Public Health and will meet weekly, and includes officers from Preston City Council. It works in partnership with NHS England, the Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB), community leaders and local general practices.
The ICB's Communications and Engagement team is coordinating and collaborating with counterparts in local authorities across Lancashire and South Cumbria to enhance the level of understanding of the measles mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine and measles. In supporting the national call and recall service, the main focus is on access to primary care for a vaccine. Furthermore, the National Health Service is working with the UK Health Security Agency to ensure the region can respond to any measles cases in a timely manner, which will include stepping up any wider vaccination offers outside of general practice if this is required.
Across the North West there is a clear focus on targeting areas of low uptake for children who may not have received one MMR vaccination. Partnership working is in place involving all key players to ensure a joined-up approach and the best use of resources.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will take steps with NHS England to help improve support for people with dementia who have (a) cognitive, (b) behavioural and (c) other care needs through the continuing healthcare funding process.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) may be appropriate for some adults with dementia who have the highest levels of complex, intense or unpredictable needs, and who have been assessed as having a primary health need. Public information leaflets are already available on GOV.UK, explaining the process used to determine whether someone is eligible for CHC.
NHS England has commissioned an information and advice service for CHC from Beacon to provide independent and high-quality support on navigating CHC assessments, resolution and care planning or to begin an appeal. It is available at the following link:
https://beaconchc.co.uk/how-we-can-help/free-information-and-advice-on-nhs-continuing-healthcare/
In addition, the Department has produced guidance on what to expect from health and care services following a dementia diagnosis.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many applications for NHS continuing healthcare were (a) made and (b) successful in (i) Preston, (ii) Lancashire and (iii) England in each of the last three years.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have interpreted this as the number of new referrals and the number assessed as eligible across Standard and Fast Track NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC), from 2020/21 to 2022/23. The following table shows the overall number of applicants and successful applicants to CHC in Lancashire and South Cumbria, Greater Preston, and England:
| England | Lancashire and South Cumbria | Greater Preston |
Applicants in 2020/21 | 129,388 | 4,521 | 448 |
Successful applicants in 2020/21 | 83,364 | 2,944 | 277 |
Applicants in 2021/22 | 162,581 | 7,202 | 702 |
Successful applicants in 2021/22 | 106,937 | 5,270 | 506 |
Applicants in 2022/23 | 171,664 | 7,158 | 720 |
Successful applicants in 2022/23 | 112,833 | 5,165 | 518 |
This data is also published online, and is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/nhs-chc-fnc/
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to increase patient access to GP appointments.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise that despite the hard work of general practice teams, some patients are still struggling to access care in a timely way. That is why we have published our Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care. The plan has two central ambitions: to tackle the 8am rush and reduce the number of people struggling to contact their practice, and for patients to know on the day they contact their practice how their request will be managed.
We will achieve this by rolling out new digital tools and telephone systems which can help practices to better match their capacity to patient demand, backed by £240 million in retargeted funding. The plan also includes further measures to empower patients to do more themselves, cut bureaucracy for general practitioners (GPs) and build capacity to deliver more appointments by diversifying the workforce. We have also increased the number of doctors working in general practice and record numbers of GPs are in training.
We have now delivered on our commitment for 50 million more GP appointments per year, with 364.1 million booked across the last 12 months.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to increase access to GPs.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise that despite the hard work of general practice teams, some patients are still struggling to access care in a timely way. That is why we have published our Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care. The plan has two central ambitions: to tackle the 8am rush and reduce the number of people struggling to contact their practice, and for patients to know on the day they contact their practice how their request will be managed.
We will achieve this by rolling out new digital tools and telephone systems which can help practices to better match their capacity to patient demand, backed by £240 million in retargeted funding. The plan also includes further measures to empower patients to do more themselves, cut bureaucracy for general practitioners (GPs) and build capacity to deliver more appointments by diversifying the workforce. We have also increased the number of doctors working in general practice and record numbers of GPs are in training.
We have now delivered on our commitment for 50 million more GP appointments per year, with 364.1 million booked across the last 12 months.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that families affected by dementia are able to access funding for care.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has produced guidance on what to expect from health and care services following a dementia diagnosis. The guidance can help those diagnosed with dementia, or supporting someone with dementia, to understand the support and services available to them in England and how they can access this support.
People who may be eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC), a National Health Service-funded package of ongoing care for adults with complex needs, should be referred by a health or social care professional to their integrated care board for screening and comprehensive assessment as appropriate. CHC may be appropriate for adults with the highest levels of complex, intense or unpredictable needs, who have been assessed as having a primary health need.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce the time taken to diagnose pancreatic cancer.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is delivering a range of interventions that are expected to increase early diagnosis and improve outcomes for those with pancreatic cancer. This includes providing a route into pancreatic cancer surveillance for those at inherited high-risk to identify lesions before they develop into cancer and diagnose cancers sooner; creating new pathways to support faster referral routes for people with non-specific symptoms that could be linked to a range of cancer types; and increasing direct access for general practitioners to diagnostic tests.
NHS England is funding a new audit into pancreatic cancer, the aim of which is to provide regular and timely evidence to cancer service providers of where patterns of care in England may vary, to increase the consistency of access to treatments and to stimulate improvements in cancer treatment and outcomes for patients. The Royal College of Surgeons began work on this audit in October 2022 and a scoping exercise in consultation with key stakeholders has taken place to shape the direction of the audit. The first report is expected in October 2024.
In addition, the Getting It Right First Time team in NHS England is undertaking a deep dive into pancreatic cancer, which will highlight actions National Health Service providers need to take to improve services, as well as gathering examples of good practice to share.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that patients are aware when they are being treated by (a) an Anaesthesia Associate and (b) other healthcare practitioners without a medical degree.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines set out that all healthcare professionals directly involved in a patient's care should introduce themselves and explain to the patient: who is responsible for their clinical care and treatment; the roles and responsibilities of the different members of the healthcare team; and the communication about their care that takes place between members of the healthcare team.
In advance of their regulation by the General Medical Council (GMC) later this year, the GMC has published interim standards for anaesthesia associates (AAs), and also physician associates, which make it clear that professionals should always introduce their role to patients and set out their responsibilities in the team.
The Royal College of Anaesthetists, in collaboration with other stakeholders, has developed the guidance, Planning the introduction and training for Anaesthesia Associates, which details the processes and considerations required when introducing AAs into departments.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
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 implications for his policies of findings of the most recent Hologic Global Women's Health Index on the comparison between the standard of women's healthcare in the UK compared to other western countries.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
No specific assessment has been made.