Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps are being taken to ensure that patients with asthma are referred for specialist treatment after two courses of oral corticosteroids or 12 courses of short-acting beta-agonists.
Answered by Jane Ellison
Software used in general practice will help identify those patients who might benefit from referral to a specialist service. However, it is for clinicians, using their clinical judgement, to decide when it is appropriate to refer individual patients for specialist treatment. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is currently developing a new guideline on asthma management which is expected to be published in June 2017.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make it his policy for patients to be able to choose a location convenient to them for receiving radiotherapy treatment; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Jane Ellison
It is a National Cancer Peer Review measure that all cancer patients are managed by a cancer-type specific multi-disciplinary team (MDT). This MDT agrees, oversees and co-ordinates the full range of care the patient receives, and considers the importance of ensuring that any cancer treatment is viewed as part of each patient’s whole cancer pathway, including clinical and supportive care. In certain circumstances, a patient may choose to have some aspects of their care delivered by a different team at a different hospital, particularly if they wish to stay with family or friends in a different part of the country to where they live whilst they receive their radiotherapy treatment. In these circumstances, the patient’s care is referred from the local MDT to the chosen MDT during this period.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he plans to take to ensure that clinical commissioning groups implement the NICE guideline on diagnosis of food allergy in children and young people in a primary care setting.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) clinical guideline, ‘Food allergy in children and young people’, published in 2011, sets out best practice on the care treatment and support for children and young people with food allergy. NICE clinical guidelines are designed to support health care professionals in their work, and commissioners should consider them when developing local services, but they do not replace the knowledge, skills and experience of clinicians in deciding how best to manage patients.
Immunotherapy for the long-term management of allergic disease may be provided as part of the NHS England’s nationally commissioned specialised allergy service. NHS England has set out what these providers must have in place to offer high quality specialised allergy care, ensuring equity of access to patients wherever they live. Around 0.1% of people with allergies in the United Kingdom, some 20,000 people, are likely to require referral to a specialist centre. NHS England’s allergy service specification, which provides more information about specialised allergy services, can be viewed at the following link:
www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/b09-spec-allergy.pdf
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to improve access to immunotherapy for the long-term management of allergic disease.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) clinical guideline, ‘Food allergy in children and young people’, published in 2011, sets out best practice on the care treatment and support for children and young people with food allergy. NICE clinical guidelines are designed to support health care professionals in their work, and commissioners should consider them when developing local services, but they do not replace the knowledge, skills and experience of clinicians in deciding how best to manage patients.
Immunotherapy for the long-term management of allergic disease may be provided as part of the NHS England’s nationally commissioned specialised allergy service. NHS England has set out what these providers must have in place to offer high quality specialised allergy care, ensuring equity of access to patients wherever they live. Around 0.1% of people with allergies in the United Kingdom, some 20,000 people, are likely to require referral to a specialist centre. NHS England’s allergy service specification, which provides more information about specialised allergy services, can be viewed at the following link:
www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/b09-spec-allergy.pdf
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he plans to take to improve GP training on the identification, diagnosis and management of allergic diseases.
Answered by Ben Gummer
It is the responsibility of the General Medical Council (GMC), working closely with the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP), to set the standards and clinical practice for general practitioners and approve education and training curricula to ensure they are equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide high quality patient care.
The GMC and the RCGP regularly review their standards and curricula to ensure they reflect good practice and the latest clinical evidence.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the announcement by the Prime Minister at the G7 Summit that all UK-funded clinical trials will be made openly available, what steps he is taking to require companies to publish such trials; and which diseases will be covered.
Answered by George Freeman
The Prime Minister has written to government departments setting out his expectations on open data and transparency. Work is underway to take forward the transparency agenda nationally and internationally. This will cover diseases that are a threat to health security, for example emerging infectious diseases with pandemic potential.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the number of physician associates employed in the NHS in (a) Hertfordshire and (b) England.
Answered by Ben Gummer
This information is not held centrally by the Department.
As at 3 June 2015, there are 152 qualified physician associates (PAs) registered on the Physician Associate Voluntary Register. This voluntary register does not provide information on whether any of these PAs are currently employed in the National Health Service.
For 2015-16, Health Education England will commission 205 PA training posts, representing an increase of 754% upon last year. With a two year training programme, successful trainees will become available for employment in 2017-18.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his policy is on the statutory regulation of physician associates; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Ben Gummer
The Government supports the current policy that the extension of statutory regulation to unregulated groups (such as physician associates) will only be considered where there is a compelling case on the basis of public safety and where voluntary registers accredited by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care are not considered sufficient to manage this risk.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his policy is on allowing physician associates to independently prescribe in the NHS.
Answered by Ben Gummer
The Department recognises and values the contribution of physician associates working in the National Health Service. Expanding the roles of experienced and qualified health professionals is enabling the NHS to make better use of staff’s skills. The flexible use of any staff group will be explored in conjunction with NHS England.
Asked by: Stephen McPartland (Conservative - Stevenage)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the physiological and social effects of consumption of high sugar energy drinks on children who are in full-time education.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has policy responsibility for the safety of high caffeine drinks. The FSA advises that children and other people who are sensitive to caffeine should consume caffeine only in moderation. Recent changes to labelling require that high caffeine drinks must now state that they are not recommended for children.
Whilst caffeine has short-term effects on the heart rate and blood pressure, there are no long-term effects. Additionally there is no evidence of a direct, long-term link between caffeine consumption and altered behaviour.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is currently evaluating the safety of caffeine and is considering whether recommended intake levels for the general population, or sub groups such as children should be established. The FSA will consider the final EFSA opinion once it is published early next year.