Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of making (a) the Dexcom G6 Continuous Glucose Monitor and (b) other glucose sensors available to people with type-one diabetes.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Both intermittent and real-time Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGMs) are available to people with type one diabetes under the NHS. CGMs can be provided under NHS prescription and sensors collected from local pharmacies.
The Dexcom One is one model of CGM that is available under the NHS. Currently the Dexcom G6 model is being considered for provision as part of the Hybrid Closed Loop (HCL) system. The HCL system includes a higher specification CGM with an algorithm that ‘speaks’ to the insulin pump to adjust the amount of insulin the pump is administering as necessary.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence have been assessing the cost effectiveness of HCL and are due to publish their recommendations soon.
Different HCL systems are available and some are built by combining interoperable devices from different companies. Because of the large number of combinations of components available to the NHS, this appraisal considers HCL systems as a class of technologies rather than individual components or systems. The Dexcom G6 is included in this assessment.
Hybrid closed loops systems are only recommended if the companies and NHS England agree a cost-effective price for the systems on behalf of the relevant health bodies.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made a recent assessment of the potential impact of climate change on trends in the level of excess deaths.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) are updating the evidence base on the health impacts of climate change through producing a United Kingdom focused report, ‘Health Effects of Climate Change in the UK’.
This report will consider a wide range of risks and opportunities of climate change impacts on health, including excess deaths where there is available evidence to determine estimations, as identified by the Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA). It will include an update of the estimates of direct and indirect climate-related health impacts using the UKCP18 climate projections, and reviews of the health impacts of multiple climate-related risks such as temperature, drought, outdoor and indoor air quality, vector-borne diseases, and net zero measures.
The report will inform local and national government and other relevant organisations of the health effects of climate change in the UK and identify research gaps and recommend actions for policy and practice where required. The fourth iteration of the report will be published in September 2023.
The previous report, third report, published in 2012 is available at the following link:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/371103/Health_Effects_of_Climate_Change_in_the_UK_2012_V13_with_cover_accessible.pdf
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the reasons for the trend in the level of excess deaths in the last 12 months.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The Department will continue to monitor and report on levels of excess deaths. The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities regularly publishes estimates of excess mortality in England. They adjust for population growth and ageing. This provides further insight on the causes of death driving the excess mortality over the last 12 months.
Whilst a detailed assessment of trends in the causes of excess deaths is not available, it is likely that a combination of factors has contributed, including high flu prevalence, the ongoing challenges of COVID-19, and health conditions such as heart disease and diabetes.
On 24 January 2023, the Government announced that it will publish a Major Conditions Strategy and an interim report will be published in the summer. The strategy will set out a strong and coherent policy agenda that sets out a shift to integrated, whole-person care. The strategy will tackle conditions that contribute most to morbidity and mortality across the population in England including, cancers, cardiovascular disease, including stroke and diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases, dementia, mental ill health and musculoskeletal conditions. Interventions set out in the strategy will aim to alleviate pressure on the health system, as well as support the government’s objective to increase healthy life expectancy and reduce ill-health related labour market inactivity.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timescale is for the completion of the Halton Hospital and Wellbeing Campus.
Answered by Will Quince
We received an expression of interest to be one of the next eight hospitals to join the New Hospital Programme from Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. The expression of interest is in respect of both Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospital and Halton General Hospital.
We have assessed the expressions of interest received and the Government aims to make an announcement in due course. Whilst this process is ongoing, we are unable to comment on individual plans.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
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 adequacy of ADHD support services in (a) Weaver Vale (b) North West England and (c) England.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
No specific assessment has been made. However, we are aware that referrals for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessment have increased for both children and adult’s diagnostic services in Cheshire West, the Weaver Vale locality provider. This position is reflected locally across Cheshire, regionally across the North West, and nationally.
In Cheshire West, work is currently underway to improve the ADHD pathway for support for both children and adults within existing resources and with regard to waiting lists to ensure an effective prioritisation process is in place and people’s support needs can be identified earlier.
In Cheshire West, there is currently an average 32 weeks waiting time from referral to start of assessment for ADHD for children and young people, with further waits post-assessment.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the effectiveness of the level 4 gateway referral process to support children with mental health needs.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
NHS England continually assesses the effectiveness of children and young people’s Tier 4 mental health services. The National Health Service is working to reduce reliance on inpatient beds and to have fewer young people being detained under the Mental Health Act. To support this, the model of inpatient care is being reviewed and re-designed to support the move to a community-based provision of care, where children and young people can access appropriate support in a timely, effective, and patient-centred way, close to home and in the least restrictive environment.
NHS England is also committed to developing a national Tier 4 admission protocol for children and young people with multi-agency partners, which will seek to address the need for improvement and consistency in practice when identifying the clinical suitability of admission to hospital, the checks and balances required prior to making referral for a Mental Health Act assessment and promotion of the least restrictive practice principle across services. The national protocol is due to be completed by summer 2023.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to increase funding into the (a) causes of and (b) treatments for Tourette’s syndrome.
Answered by Will Quince
The Department commissions research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). In 2021-22, the NIHR spent £120 million on mental health research, which is a significant year on year increase in investment and we expect this funding to continue in the future. The Department has not assessed funding allocated for Tourette’s syndrome; it is not usual practice to ring-fence funds for particular topics or conditions. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including the causes and treatments of Tourette’s syndrome.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
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 improve the quality of training for service providers on (a) Tourette’s syndrome and (b) other tic disorders.
Answered by Will Quince
Individual employers are responsible for ensuring that staff are trained, competent and have the necessary skills to safely and effectively treat patients in their care, including those with Tourette’s syndrome and other neurological disorders.
E-learning for Healthcare has produced modular online learning resources in relation to Tourette’s and other tic disorders, within its neurodevelopmental disorder and healthy schools programme domains, which are freely accessible to all including service providers.
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people were diagnosed with diabetes in Weaver Vale constituency in each year since 2020.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows the number of people diagnosed with diabetes in Weaver Vale constituency in each year since 2020.
Year of diagnosis | Number of people diagnosed with diabetes |
2020 | 280 |
2021 | 345 |
Footnotes
Asked by: Mike Amesbury (Labour - Weaver Vale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to increase the number of specialist practitioners (a) researching and (b) treating Tourette’s Syndrome.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has no specific plans to increase the number of specialist practitioners researching and treating Tourette’s Syndrome. The majority of services for people with Tourette’s syndrome are commissioned locally by integrated care boards, who are best placed to plan the provision of services subject to local prioritisation and need.