Asked by: Paul Beresford (Conservative - Mole Valley)
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 dermatology waiting times; and whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the collection of waiting times data in dermatology.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.Asked by: Paul Beresford (Conservative - Mole Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what additional support his Department is providing to dermatology services in 2021.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.
Asked by: Paul Beresford (Conservative - Mole Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for his policies of the 23 recommendations in the Dermatology Getting it right first time Programme National Specialty Report: Proposed Recommendations, published on 15 September 2020.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.
Asked by: Paul Beresford (Conservative - Mole Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timetable is for publishing the Getting It Right First Time dermatology national specialty report.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.
Asked by: Paul Beresford (Conservative - Mole Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will undertake a review of whether alcohol-free hand sanitisers which are independently lab-certified to be effective can be included in public guidance alongside alcohol-based products.
Answered by Jo Churchill
Providers of National Health Service care in England use the evidence cited and ensure that appropriate training is provided to health care workers in hand hygiene, providers also ensure that products are purchased that are consistent with the best available evidence. All healthcare workers have access to occupational health assessment and are referred for assessment and treatment in the event of developing skin complications. Using the guidelines, recommendations made by occupational health are followed by NHS providers as part of risk assessment and mitigation for the individual and the patient.
As Health and Safety Executive guidance for the general public states, and in line with WHO guidance, alcohol does not have to be “active ingredients” to be effective in hand sanitizer. The World Health Organization recommend that hand sanitiser should contain a minimum of 60% alcohol, but non-alcohol based sanitisers can also be effective when combined with other social distancing measures.
Asked by: Paul Beresford (Conservative - Mole Valley)
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 adequacy of guidance on hand sanitisers for people who cannot use alcohol-based hand rubs as a result of (a) eczema, (b) dermatitis, (c) other skin conditions and (d) allergy reactions.
Answered by Jo Churchill
Providers of National Health Service care in England use the evidence cited and ensure that appropriate training is provided to health care workers in hand hygiene, providers also ensure that products are purchased that are consistent with the best available evidence. All healthcare workers have access to occupational health assessment and are referred for assessment and treatment in the event of developing skin complications. Using the guidelines, recommendations made by occupational health are followed by NHS providers as part of risk assessment and mitigation for the individual and the patient.
As Health and Safety Executive guidance for the general public states, and in line with WHO guidance, alcohol does not have to be “active ingredients” to be effective in hand sanitizer. The World Health Organization recommend that hand sanitiser should contain a minimum of 60% alcohol, but non-alcohol based sanitisers can also be effective when combined with other social distancing measures.
Asked by: Paul Beresford (Conservative - Mole Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment the Government has made of the (a) effect of alcohol-based hand sanitisers on people with skin conditions and (b) effectiveness of alternatives available to people who cannot use alcohol-based hand sanitisers due to skin conditions or allergies.
Answered by Jo Churchill
Providers of National Health Service care in England use the evidence cited and ensure that appropriate training is provided to health care workers in hand hygiene, providers also ensure that products are purchased that are consistent with the best available evidence. All healthcare workers have access to occupational health assessment and are referred for assessment and treatment in the event of developing skin complications. Using the guidelines, recommendations made by occupational health are followed by NHS providers as part of risk assessment and mitigation for the individual and the patient.
As Health and Safety Executive guidance for the general public states, and in line with WHO guidance, alcohol does not have to be “active ingredients” to be effective in hand sanitizer. The World Health Organization recommend that hand sanitiser should contain a minimum of 60% alcohol, but non-alcohol based sanitisers can also be effective when combined with other social distancing measures.
Asked by: Paul Beresford (Conservative - Mole Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much Government funding was allocated to biomedical research into myalgic encephalomyelitis in the financial years (a) 2017-18, (b) 2018-19 and (c) 2019-20.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The following table shows how much Government funding was allocated to biomedical research into myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) for financial years 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20.
Financial Year | £ |
2017-18 | 226,470 |
2018-19 | 396,467 |
2019-20 | 443,719 |
In addition to the funding set out above, the National Institute for Health Research, funded through the Department, and the Medical Research Council have recently announced a £3.2 million award to fund research into potential genetic connections to ME/CFS. The project will analyse samples from 20,000 people with ME/CFS to search for genetic differences that may indicate underlying causes or increase the risk of developing the condition.