| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Oncology Drugs
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the allocation of investment to health authority budgets for oncology drugs. [118324]
Yvette Cooper: Funding for oncology drugs is not identified separately within allocations made to health authorities. Improving cancer services is one of the National Health Services top priorities for action, and health authorities and primary care groups will need to take this into account in allocating resources.
We have made clear in a letter to all health authority chief executives that the extra £600 million allocated to the Health Service for 2000-01 will, in part, be used to meet any additional costs arising from implementation of recommendations by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence.
Pathogenesis
Mr. Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the identifiable causes of (a) ME, (b) MS and (c) HIV/AIDS. [118585]
Yvette Cooper: The causes of myalgic encephalomyelitis also known as chronic fatigue syndrome are not known. A large number of different disorders have been put forward or implicated in trying to identify its causes. These range from biochemical and immunological disorders and various viruses including the Epstein Barr virus (glandular fever). It seems possible that the syndrome represents a spectrum of illnesses, some of which will have an unidentified physical cause.
The causes of multiple sclerosis are not known. However, there is some evidence to suggest cause may be linked to environmental factors. A 1993 British Society of Rehabilitation Medicine Working Party Report on MS notes that the prevalence of MS is related to geographical latitudes, being higher in the north of Britain than in the South. The best evidence to date reports a prevalence rising from 99 per 100,000 of the population in Southampton to 178 per 100,000 of the population in North East Scotland.
There is an international scientific consensus that infection with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is the cause of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). This understanding is based on worldwide studies of individuals with AIDS, populations known to be at risk of AIDS, as well as studies of the virus itself.
NHS Staff (East Somerset)
Mr. Ashdown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) nurses, (b) doctors, (c) consultants and (d) midwives were employed by the (i) East Somerset Health Authority and (ii) Yeovil district hospital in each year since 1992; and if he will make a statement. [118639]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 11 April 2000]: The information requested is shown in the table.
(13) Somerset Health Authority includes Somerset Health Authority, Avalon, Somerset NHS Trust, East Somerset NHS Trust and Taunton and Somerset NHS Trust.
(14) Hospital medical staff includes all doctors working in hospitals within the HCHS sector.
Notes:
1. 1992, 1993 and 1994 figures include agency staff and exclude learners.
2. 1995 to 1998 figures exclude agency staff and learners.
3. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
4. A new classification of the non-medical workforce was introduced in 1995. Information based on this classification is not directly comparable with earlier years.
Sources:
1. Department of Health Non-Medical Workforce Census.
2. Department of Health Medical and Dental Workforce Census.
12 Apr 2000 : Column: 211W
12 Apr 2000 : Column: 211W
Cleaning and Hygiene Services
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate (a) how many and (b) what percentage of hospitals have contracted out cleaning and hygiene services for clinical areas to private operators; how many had done so before 1 May 1997; and how many have done so since 1 May 1997. [118517]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 11 April 200]: The information is not collected centrally. Trust chief executives are responsible for standards of cleanliness and hygiene in hospitals. Hospitals contract out provision of cleaning services, or provide them in-house. Regardless of the method of provision, the services provided should meet appropriate standards and provide best value. To help trusts meet appropriate standards we will be publishing later this month "Standards for Environmental Cleanliness in Hospitals", developed by the Infection Control Nurses Association and the Association of Domestic Managers.
Dentists (Pay)
Mr. Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to include dental therapists in a pay review body; and if he will make a statement. [118518]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 11 April 2000]: Our proposals for modernising National Health Service pay which were published in February 1999 in "Agenda for Change", include bringing some groups of highly qualified staff within the scope of the Nursing Pay Review Body, without changing its fundamentally professional character.
Initial discussions with NHS trade unions on pay modernisation resulted in a joint Framework of Principles and Agreed Statement on the Way Forward which was published on 8 October 1999. Para 7.2 of the Joint
12 Apr 2000 : Column: 212W
Framework sets out the following starting point for more detailed discussions with trade unions on the qualifying criteria for groups to come within the scope of the NPRB:
- Professions with a minimum entry requirement of three years educational study (or equivalent) to diploma level or higher, in a health specific area (other than medicine or dentistry) and which are state registered and have a substantial majority of members employed in health care.
- Exceptions might be agreed for staff groups which met the majority but not all of these conditions
- Staff groups which support professions added to the NPRB remit, and who have a direct connection with the transferred groups similar to that between nursing auxiliaries and registered nurses would also need to be considered for transfer.
Re-branding Exercise
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what will be the cost of the re-branding exercise (a) across the NHS and (b) by region. [118670]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 11 April 2000]: Adoption of the national National Health Service mark is being undertaken as items come up for replacement in the normal course of business. As a result, no NHS organisation has been required to undertake any additional work and no additional costs to NHS organisations are envisaged. New NHS organisations formed as the result of mergers will save money by adoption of the existing mark rather than having to invest in designing a new logo.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health by what date the re-branding exercise in the NHS has to be completed. [118669]
12 Apr 2000 : Column: 213W
Mr. Denham [holding answer 11 April 2000]: Health authorities have been asked to start using the existing National Health Service mark by January 2000, and NHS trusts by April 2001. No deadline has been set for NHS organisations to apply the NHS mark universally.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is his estimate of the cost of materials which will become obsolete through the re-branding of the NHS. [118733]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 11 April 2000]: No items will become obsolete through the re-branding of the National Health Service. Materials will be ordered in the new style only when they come up for replacement in the normal course of business.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the items used by the NHS on which the new NHS logo is to be placed. [118668]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 11 April 2000]: The National Health Service mark should be used on any item which previously displayed an NHS trust or health authority logo. Items will be ordered in the new style only when they come up for replacement in the normal course of business.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what level of cost savings he estimates the re-branding exercise for the NHS will entail. [118671]
Mr. Denham [holding answer 11 April 2000]: New National Health Service organisations (formed to modernise the service--such as primary care groups and trusts--or as a result of mergers) have saved money by adopting the existing NHS mark rather than having to invest in designing new logos. Over time, further savings will be generated for the rest of the NHS as a common design standard enables the service to negotiate economies of scale with suppliers. The level of cost- saving depends on local turnover of stock within the NHS: items are being replaced in the new style only when they come up for replacement in the normal course of business.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |