Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2017 to Question 60683, on neuromuscular disorders: South East, how many neuromuscular care advisors will cover Kent, Surrey and Sussex; which clinical commissioning groups in Kent, Surrey and Sussex will contribute to funding neuromuscular care advisor roles; what the remit will be of Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust in this process; and when it is planned for relevant clinical commissioning groups to finalise job descriptions and begin recruitment.

NHS England is responsible for commissioning specialised neurological services, including some services for patients with neuromuscular disorders. NHS England has published a service specification for neurological care that includes an exemplar service specification for neuromuscular conditions that sets out what providers must have in place to offer evidence-based, safe and effective services. The service specification for neurological care can be found at the following link:

www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/d04-neurosci-spec-neuro.pdf

The responsibility for delivering the service rests with National Health Service provider organisations, and each trust will develop an appropriate role to ensure that the care pathway is delivered. The role may vary depending on the provider organisation, but an NHS England service specialist will be working with trusts to ensure that they meet the requirements of the overall service specification.