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 raise public awareness of the symptoms of chronic urinary tract infections.

The National Health Service provides information on the symptoms of urinary tract infections (UTIs), including chronic UTIs, at the following link:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/urinary-tract-infections-utis/

The Department currently has no plans to raise public awareness of the symptoms of chronic UTIs. However, the Department, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), is funding research to improve the diagnosis and treatment of UTIs, including chronic UTIs. This research includes the development of antimicrobial-impregnated catheters to reduce episodes of catheter-associated UTIs as well as the TOUCAN study, with further information available at the following link:

https://www.phctrials.ox.ac.uk/recruiting-trials/toucan-platform-for-uti-diagnostic-evaluation

This study is evaluating rapid point of care UTI diagnostic tests in general practice surgeries that not only enable faster detection of UTIs but also provide real-time information on antibiotic resistance, ensuring patients receive the correct treatment.