Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they next expect to commission a foetal sentience evidence review and what organisations they will invite to undertake that and future reviews.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government does not formulate policy on foetal sentience. The review and determination of foetal sentience and its implications for abortion and clinical practice is reached through professional medical consensus and clinical guidance.
A recent and comprehensive review into Fetal Awareness Evidence was recently carried out by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Published in December 2022, the review concluded that evidence to date indicates the possibility of pain perception before 28 weeks of gestation is unlikely. A copy of the review is attached.
As an independent organisation responsible for producing clinical guidelines and setting standards for high quality women’s healthcare, the Government recognises their clinical expertise on this matter.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to reduce Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services waiting lists.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
We are committed to expanding and transforming National Health Service mental health care through the NHS Long Term Plan so more people, including children and young people, can be supported more quickly. The NHS forecasts that, between 2018/19 and 2023/24, spending on mental health services has increased by £4.7 billion in cash terms, compared to the target of £3.4 billion set out at the time of the NHS Long Term Plan. Nationally, overall spend on children and young people’s mental health services has increased from £841 million in 2019/20 to just over £1 billion in 2022/23. In the year to December 2023, over 750,000 children and young people aged under 18 years old were supported through NHS funded mental health services, a 31% increase since March 2021.
We are rolling out Mental Health Support Teams in schools and colleges in England, and as of May 2023, these teams cover 3.4 million pupils in England, or the equivalent to 35% of pupils. We expect this to increase to 44% by spring 2024, and we are extending coverage to 50% of pupils by the end of March 2025. We are also providing £8 million to fund 24 early support hubs across the country. This will improve access for children and young people to vital mental health support in the community, offering early interventions to improve wellbeing before their condition escalates further.
In addition, the NHS is working towards implementing five new waiting time standards for people requiring mental healthcare in both accident and emergency and in the community, to ensure timely access to the most appropriate, high-quality support. Four of these include children and young people.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment her Department has made of the impact of the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023 on the ability of healthcare professionals to participate in industrial action.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023 allows for regulations to be laid in Parliament in the health sector. The Strikes (Minimum Service Levels: NHS Ambulance Services and the NHS Patient Transport Service) Regulations 2023 came into force on 8 December 2023.
As we set out in in our consultation response on minimum service levels in the ambulance sector, in our engagement with representatives from ambulance trusts, they indicated that establishing a minimum service level at the level specified in the regulations would require approximately 80% of an ambulance service’s resources on a typical shift. Therefore, if an employer chose to issue work notices during a strike, it is likely that a high proportion of all levels of paramedics, emergency care assistants, and other staff in the ambulance teams rostered to work on a strike would be named, and this would have a significant impact on the ability of employees to participate in strike action. The Department has consulted on whether to implement similar regulations for hospital services, and will set out its response in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Merron (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential impact on the mental health and wellbeing of secondary care staff if their partnership with NHS Practitioner Health is ended after the 12-month review period.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise that the NHS Practitioner Health service is valued by many doctors. NHS England is reviewing the service as part of a wider review of its mental health and wellbeing offer to National Health Service staff. It was confirmed on 15 April 2024 that the service will continue to accept new patients from primary and secondary care whilst this review is undertaken over the next 12 months. NHS England will assess the impact and confirm future arrangements once the review has been completed.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Streatham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of outsourcing dialysis services in Lambeth on patient care.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Any service changes should be based on clear evidence that they will deliver better patient outcomes.
Within Lambeth, patients who will receive dialysis at the new site in Brixton will receive care in a significantly improved environment within brand new facilities in a great example of innovative public/private partnership.
NHS England has established the Renal Services Transformation Programme to reduce unwarranted variation in the quality and accessibility of renal care.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 14 March 2022 to Question 133232 on Antibiotics: Drug Resistance and to the policy paper entitled UK five-year action plan for antimicrobial resistance: 2019 to 2024, published on 24 January 2019, what recent progress her Department has made on halving healthcare-associated Gram-negative blood stream infections.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
As described in the answer of 14 March 2022 to Question 133232, progress towards the target of halving healthcare-associated Gram-negative bloodstream infections (GNBSI) has proved very challenging, in part due to the diverse nature of the underlying causes of these infections. Data on the incidence of these infections in England is published quarterly by the UK Health Security Agency, and is available at the following link:
Incidence of the three main healthcare-associated GNBSI organisms, E. coli, klebsiella pneumoniae, and pseudomonas aeruginosa, has fluctuated between 2019 and 2024, including a sharp decline in the incidence of E. coli seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, overall, the total incidence of healthcare associated GNBSI remains significantly above the target.
We are currently developing the 2024 to 2029 antimicrobial resistance national action plan. We anticipate that in the delivery of this plan, we will continue to focus on GNBSI, building on lessons learnt over the past five years.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate she has made of the (a) cost to the NHS of lack of specialist bowel care for patients with neurogenic bowel disorders and (b) additional costs incurred by (i) diagnosis and treatment of pressure sores resulting from inadequate care and (ii) other secondary complications.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has no plans at present to establish a national policy on neurogenic bowel disorder. To help ensure that patients with neurogenic bowel receive timely and appropriate care, NHS England has developed a range of guidance, including its Excellence in Continence Care guidance. NHS England has also published a service specification for spinal cord injury services, which makes specific reference to bowel care. It outlines that patients with spinal injury should be provided with advice and care by specialist nursing staff in specialist fields, including in the field of bladder and bowel management. In addition, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines on faecal incontinence set out the care that patients with neurogenic bowel should receive, including a neurological bowel management programme.
No estimate has been made of the cost to the National Health Service of a lack of specialist bowel care for patients with neurogenic bowel disorders. Nor has an estimate been made of the costs incurred by the diagnosis and treatment of pressure sores, resulting from inadequate care and other secondary complications.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of decoupling the age at which an individual can claim their NHS Pension from the State Pension Age.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The NHS Pension Scheme is generous, and provides good pensions for retirement. A new reformed scheme was introduced in 2015, to ensure the costs are sustainable for the future. The reforms included linking scheme retirement age to an individual’s state pension age, in response to people living healthier, longer lives.
Individuals can claim their National Health Service pension earlier than their state pension age, although their benefits will be reduced in value, to account for the fact that they are being paid for longer. This reduction is waived when the scheme accepts a claim for early retirement on ill-health grounds. Where an NHS pension is claimed after state pension age, the reverse applies, and the value of benefits will be increased. The scheme also offers a partial retirement option, which allows staff to draw down all or part of their pension, and continue working in a more flexible way.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department has taken to improve care for people with Parkinson's disease.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I would like to thank my Honourable friend who is a tireless campaigner on this issue.Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress she has made on implementing the mandatory fortification of flour with folic acid.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I can assure the honourable Member that we remain firmly committed to the mandatory fortification of flour with folic acid. This will help to prevent around 200 neural tube defects each year.
This policy is being delivered across the UK as part of the wider review of the Bread and Flour Regulations. In January, we published the consultation response, and we will bring forward legislation to implement the policy later this year.