Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the report of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review report entitled First Do No Harm, published in July 2020, what recent steps he has taken to progress implementation of recommendation five of that report on the rollout of specialist centres.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
As of April 2021, eight National Health Service trusts are working with NHS England and NHS Improvement to provide specialised services for women with complications of mesh inserted for urinary incontinence and vaginal prolapse. We continue to consider specialist centres for those adversely affected by medicines taken during pregnancy. Further detail on this recommendation will be included in the full response to the report to be published this year.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what (a) support and (b) guidance is available to patients needing treatment for (i) toothache, (ii) abscesses and (iii) other urgent dental conditions.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
To meet the Government social distancing measures and to contain the spread of COVID-19 all routine dentistry has currently been suspended.
We expect all National Health Service dental practices to provide urgent telephone advice and triage. Dentists are giving urgent advice remotely and, if needed, prescriptions for painkillers or antibiotics. All urgent face to face treatment that is clinically necessary is available for patients who are triaged by their dentist or NHS 111 into one of the 550 urgent dental care centres set up by NHS England and NHS Improvement.
The urgent dental centres are expected to provide, where urgently needed, the full range of dental treatment normally available on the NHS.
NHS England and NHS Improvement announced on 28 May that NHS dentistry outside urgent care centres will begin to restart from 8 June with the aim of increasing levels of service as fast as is compatible with maximising safety.
A copy of the letter that was published can be found at the following link:
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden)
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 when it will be safe for dentists and dental practitioners to re-open.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
National Health Service dentistry was reorganised in late March along with other NHS primary care services to minimise face to face care to contain the spread of COVID-19 during the peak of the pandemic. Dentists were asked to suspend all routine treatment and instead to offer urgent advice and, where required, prescriptions for antibiotics by telephone. Urgent treatment was made available through urgent dental centres (UDCs) set up in each NHS region.
As of 25 May there are currently over 550 UDCs open. Patients are triaged into UDCs by their own dentistry or through NHS 111. The UDCs are expected to provide, where urgently needed, the full range of dental treatment normally available on the NHS.
NHS England and NHS Improvement announced on 28 May that NHS dentistry outside UDCs will begin to restart from 8 June with the aim of increasing levels of service as fast as is compatible with maximising safety. The letter to dentists setting this out is available at the following link:
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
What steps his Department is taking to support the mental health of NHS staff during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
We have commissioned NHS England to develop a comprehensive emotional, psychological and practical support package for all National Health Service staff. The first line of support focuses on team behaviours – ensuring good line management and team practices, reflecting on daily events – backed up by good local occupational health support. Nationally, all NHS staff now have free access to a helpline and text service for counselling and support, a dedicated bereavement helpline and a range of well-being apps.