Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)
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 (a) reduce variations in access to menopause treatment and (b) ensure that women get equal access to the treatments they need.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The NHS National Menopause Care Improvement Programme aims to improve clinical menopause care in England and reduce disparities in access to treatment. The National Health Service is also developing an education and training package on menopause for healthcare professionals.
We are planning to introduce a pre-payment certificate (PPC) for hormone replacement therapy (HRT) from April 2023. The PPC will enable women to access as many NHS prescriptions for HRT medicines licensed for treatment of the menopause as needed for an annual cost of two single item prescription charges.
We are also working with suppliers to expedite resupply dates of HRT products and secure additional stock via Serious Shortage Protocols and we have allowed alternative products to be dispensed. We are also working with the pharmaceutical industry to increase capacity to meet demand.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)
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 implications for his policies of the level of vacancies for consultant dermatologists in the South East; and if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of these vacancies on patient waiting times.
Answered by Will Quince
No specific assessment has been made.
The ‘Delivery plan for tackling the COVID-19 backlog of elective care’ sets out that the National Health Service will expand workforce capacity by identifying and addressing vacancies in specific staff groups and sectors. We will also implement measures to retain NHS staff, including local support for mental and physical health and wellbeing. We have also created 15 additional postgraduate training posts in dermatology from August 2022.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for paediatrics appointments in Kent and Medway in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Will Quince
In March 2022, the average waiting time for an outpatient appointment in the Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group where the main specialty was paediatric-related was 274 days.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what contingencies are in place for people using sleep apnoea machines, in the event of energy blackouts in winter 2022-23.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Care providers and suppliers support those with long term conditions to safely use medical equipment at home and in cases where the equipment is disrupted. In a power outage scenario, the Priority Services Register is maintained by electricity network operators to target support to the most vulnerable customers.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending the NHS Pension Scheme to help increase the recruitment and retention of clinical staff in Kent and Medway.
Answered by Will Quince
The NHS Pension Scheme provides generous retirement benefits for all NHS staff, including those in Kent and Medway. To retain senior clinicians affected by pension tax, we will resolve annual allowance tax charges and we expect employers to make contribution recycling available to affected staff. We will also remove barriers for staff retiring and returning to work and facilitate partial retirement.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate her Department has made of the number of GP appointments in Canterbury constituency in the past 12 months and what the number was in 2013.
Answered by Will Quince
This information is not collected in the format requested, However, in the 12 months to August 2022, there were 10.2 million general practice appointments in the Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board area, excluding COVID-19 vaccinations.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason students studying for a Paramedic Science degree course as their second degree are not eligible for grants from the NHS Learning Support Fund.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Second Degree Paramedicine students are not eligible for support from the Student Loans Company and therefore, are not eligible for the NHS Learning Support Fund.
The Department of Health and Social Care is in discussions with the Department for Education about providing an Equivalent or Lower Qualification exemption to the student finance rules for paramedicine. Subject to the outcome of these discussions and availability of the necessary funding, those studying paramedicine as a second degree could access tuition fee and maintenance loan support if eligible and if so, would have access to the NHS Learning Support Fund.
The Government keeps the funding arrangements for all pre-registration National Health Service health professionals’ education under review, to ensure that students are appropriately supported. In doing so, it must make use of finite financial resources to balance the level of support students receive with the need to make best use of public funds to deliver value for money.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time is for a patient to be diagnosed with long covid within NHS Trusts in the South East.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Since November 2020, NHS England has invested £224 million for the treatment of people experiencing the long term effects of COVID-19. The South East has received approximately £25 million and 13 adult Post-COVID-19 clinics and two specialist paediatric hubs for children and young people have been established. NHS England’s South East regional team, also provides dedicated regional clinical leadership and resources to improve the quality and sustainability of these services.
Information on average waiting times is not held in the format requested. While information on activity and demographics of patients who have been referred to a post-COVID-19 assessment service in England has been collected since September 2021, the average waiting time for treatment following an initial specialist assessment is not held centrally.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what additional support and resources are being made available to NHS Trusts in the South East for patients diagnosed with long covid.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Since November 2020, NHS England has invested £224 million for the treatment of people experiencing the long term effects of COVID-19. The South East has received approximately £25 million and 13 adult Post-COVID-19 clinics and two specialist paediatric hubs for children and young people have been established. NHS England’s South East regional team, also provides dedicated regional clinical leadership and resources to improve the quality and sustainability of these services.
Information on average waiting times is not held in the format requested. While information on activity and demographics of patients who have been referred to a post-COVID-19 assessment service in England has been collected since September 2021, the average waiting time for treatment following an initial specialist assessment is not held centrally.