Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans the Government has to review the eligibility criteria for NHS patient transport.
Answered by Jo Churchill
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has included the drug Dornase Alfa in the priority stockpiling list in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.
Answered by Edward Argar
The Department is doing everything appropriate to prepare for leaving the European Union. We want to reassure patients that our plans should ensure the uninterrupted supply of medicines and medical products, including dornase alfa, once we have left the EU.
The Department, as part of our EU exit preparations, is implementing a multi-layered approach to mitigate potential disruption to supply, which consists of stockpiling where possible, securing freight capacity, changing or clarifying regulatory requirements, procuring additional warehousing, working closely with industry to improve trader readiness and putting in place the National Supply Disruption Response to manage potential shortages. Further details can be found at the following link:
All prescription only medicines and pharmacy medicines imported from or via the EU/European Economic Area are within scope of the continuity of supply programme. All suppliers of these medicines, including suppliers of dornase alfa, have been asked to stockpile medicines and make other preparations as set out in our communications to suppliers.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to (a) raise awareness and (b) decrease the number of misdiagnoses of Lipoedema.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The National Health Service website provides information for patients and the public on a wide range of conditions, including lipoedema.
To support clinicians in identifying and treating lipoedema, in May 2014, the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) worked in partnership with the charity Lipoedema UK to develop and publish an e-learning module for GPs on the diagnosis and management of lipoedema. The module was endorsed by the Royal College of Nursing and updated in 2018.
In May 2017 Wounds UK, an organisation that provides guidance, education and training in wound and skin management, published best practice guidance on diagnosing and treating lipoedema. The guidance can be found at the following link:
www.lipoedema.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/WUK_Lipoedema-BPS_Web.pdf
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
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 waiting times in mental health services for initial treatment for children at the North-East London Foundation Trust.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
The Department has introduced two waiting time standards for children and young people and are on track to meet both of these standards. The first aims for 95% of children (up to 19 years old) with eating disorders to receive treatment within a week for urgent cases and four weeks for routine cases by 2020/21. 81.3% of children and young people’s eating disorder patients started urgent treatment within one week and 80.2% of patients started routine treatment within four weeks in April to June 2018. The second aims for 50% of patients of all ages experiencing a first episode of psychosis to receive treatment within two weeks of referral. Nationally, the National Health Service is exceeding the target, with 76.2% of patients started treatment within two weeks in November 2018.
West Kent Clinical Commissioning Group, working with North East London Foundation Trust, continues to embed new service modelling and transform services for children and young people in Kent. The new model provides a Single Point of Access along with clear and seamless pathways to support ranging from Universal ‘Early Help’ through to highly specialist care with better transition between services. During the initial six months the service underwent significant changes designed to address access and treatment waiting times. This included the provision of a Crisis Service with additional capacity, digital therapy access offers and national and local recruitment campaigns to increase capacity and resource.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce waiting times for children receiving initial mental health treatment in West Kent.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
The Department has introduced two waiting time standards for children and young people and are on track to meet both of these standards. The first aims for 95% of children (up to 19 years old) with eating disorders to receive treatment within a week for urgent cases and four weeks for routine cases by 2020/21. 81.3% of children and young people’s eating disorder patients started urgent treatment within one week and 80.2% of patients started routine treatment within four weeks in April to June 2018. The second aims for 50% of patients of all ages experiencing a first episode of psychosis to receive treatment within two weeks of referral. Nationally, the National Health Service is exceeding the target, with 76.2% of patients started treatment within two weeks in November 2018.
West Kent Clinical Commissioning Group, working with North East London Foundation Trust, continues to embed new service modelling and transform services for children and young people in Kent. The new model provides a Single Point of Access along with clear and seamless pathways to support ranging from Universal ‘Early Help’ through to highly specialist care with better transition between services. During the initial six months the service underwent significant changes designed to address access and treatment waiting times. This included the provision of a Crisis Service with additional capacity, digital therapy access offers and national and local recruitment campaigns to increase capacity and resource.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to classify diabetes as a clinical priority.
Answered by Steve Brine
Preventing diabetes and promoting the best possible care for people with diabetes is a key priority for this Government.
The Government’s mandate to NHS England for 2018/19 includes an objective for NHS England “to lead a step change in the National Health Service in preventing ill health and supporting people to live healthier lives”. This includes people with diabetes.
The NHS has been asked to set out a long term plan for the future of the NHS, setting out ambitions for improvement over the next decade, and plans to meet them over the five years of the funding settlement. Further investment in diabetes prevention and treatment will be determined in the context of the long term plan, which is due to be published later this year.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS emergency treatment centres are located inside the London congestion charge zone.
Answered by Steve Barclay
NHS Improvement has confirmed two hospitals with emergency treatment centres are located inside the London congestion charge zone. These are St Thomas’ Hospital, with accident and emergency (A&E) and Urgent Care Centre (UCC) facilities and Guy’s Hospital, which contains a standalone UCC but no A&E.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many ambulance crew are based inside the London congestion charge zone.
Answered by Steve Barclay
This information is not collected centrally.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will ban smoking on all NHS premises.
Answered by Steve Brine
The Department supports the implementation of smokefree policies across all hospitals in England. The Government’s tobacco control plan for England published in July 2017 reiterates our ambition to achieve smokefree mental health services by the end of 2018 and to see all National Health Service estates becoming smoke-free by 2019/20, as set out in NHS England’s ‘Next steps on the NHS Five Year Forward View’ mandate.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what work his Department is carrying out with the Department for Transport to help ensure that people with mobility issues and disabilities can access public transport.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
The public consultation on the Department of Transport’s draft Transport Accessibility Action plan closed on the 22 November 2017 and the responses are currently being analysed. The Department of Health will work with the Department of Transport as appropriate in responding to the consultation.