GPs: Continuity of Care Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con) 1.
Whether he supports the continuity of care and long-term
relationship between a GP and their patients. (901945) The
Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Steve Barclay) The
recent Health and Social Care Committee report rightly highlights
the importance of continuity of care, recognising that there is
sometimes a trade-off between speed of access and continuity of
care. Michael Fabricant...Request free
trial
GPs: Continuity of Care
(Lichfield) (Con)
1. Whether he supports the continuity of care and long-term
relationship between a GP and their patients. (901945)
The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care ()
The recent Health and Social Care Committee report rightly
highlights the importance of continuity of care, recognising that
there is sometimes a trade-off between speed of access and
continuity of care.
I welcome my right hon. Friend back to the Front Bench in this
position; it is great to see him there. Investigations in the
United States and in Australia show that if there is a close
relationship between a patient and one specific general
practitioner, the outcomes are better in terms of both morbidity
and visits to A&E. What can the Government do to encourage
that practice, and what is the Government’s view of that
practice?
My hon. Friend raises an important point. If one looks at the GP
survey of patients, around two in five have a GP that they would
like to have continuity of care with, and more than one third of
those say that they see them a lot of the time or always. It is
more pertinent with complex cases, where that continuity of care
adds most value, as opposed to patients who want speed of access
on an isolated incident.
(Feltham and Heston)
(Lab/Co-op)
We have seen a cut of almost 5,000 GPs and the closure of
hundreds of practices in the past 10 years. My constituents are
having a terrible time trying to get GP appointments and, when
they do, the lack of continuity of care is impacting the
effectiveness of that care; it is a strain to tell the same story
again and again, particularly for older people and those with
complex conditions. Can the Secretary of State outline what he is
actually going to do about it?
In fact, around 80,000 more GP appointments a day are happening,
so significantly more demand is being met. The Government have
invested an extra £1.5 billion to create an additional 50 million
general practice appointments by 2024, increasing and
diversifying the staff available for those patients seeking
care.
(Hemel Hempstead) (Con)
One way GPs can get better outcomes for their patients is to see
them face to face if possible, particularly with prostate cancer
in men. Men just do not present themselves to their GP as often
as they should. Today is 1 November—Movember—so what is the
Secretary of State going to do to promote men’s coming forward to
see their GPs so that we can get this disease eradicated?
First, I pay tribute to the work my right hon. Friend is doing to
raise awareness of this issue. It is important that those
patients who want access to face-to-face appointments are able to
get them, and campaigns such as Movember are a great way of
raising that awareness.
(Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD)
In Cumbria we have lost one in six of our GPs in the past six
years, most recently at the Central Lakes medical practice in
Ambleside and Hawkshead. Will the Secretary of State pay special
attention to the letting of that new contract to ensure that
there is a GP service running out of the surgeries in Ambleside
and Hawkshead? Will he also give thought to the fact that the
Government’s removal of the minimum practice income guarantee has
cost many rural surgeries their ability to be sustainable, and
consider bringing back a sustainable small surgeries fund so that
small rural surgeries can stay open?
As a rural MP and having worked in Kendal earlier in my career, I
know the geography to which the hon. Gentleman refers. That is
why we are investing in more GP training, increasing the number
from 2,671 in 2014 to 4,000, but it is also why we introduced the
payment of £20,000, to encourage GPs into those areas that are
hard to recruit in.
(Winchester) (Con)
The new Secretary of State—it is great to see him
back—understands that there is a wealth of evidence that higher
levels of continuity of care in general practice are good for
patients and, indeed, for GPs themselves. I wonder if I could
press him a little further. Is the new ministerial team open to
limiting the list size of patients a GP has, as more GPs come
online through the Government’s plans? Would he like to see
personal lists reimplemented in the GP contract during his
tenure?
Alongside the Government, no one wants to see better patient
outcomes more than GPs themselves. By their training, they are
evidence-led, so I look forward to discussing with the GP
workforce how we can work together in a constructive spirit to
deliver on whatever the evidence is showing. As I said, there is
a body of evidence around continuity of care, but it is more
weighted towards those with more complex needs, and not every
patient prioritises that in terms of access to their GP.
(York Central)
(Lab/Co-op)
The Health and Social Care Committee report showed that
continuity of care was best for patient safety, which is so
important, but in order to deliver that, there needs to be some
headroom at practice level to bring about a reorientation of
local services. How will the Secretary of State create that
headroom, and will he adopt the report’s findings in full?
I know that the hon. Lady has a lot of expertise in this area,
and she raises a valid and important point. That is why, through
the GP contract framework for 2020-21, we announced a number of
new national retention schemes and continued support for existing
schemes to retain more GPs. It is also why, at the other end, we
are boosting training numbers, to get more GPs into the
pipeline.
(Enfield North) (Lab)
The Secretary of State says they are investing in GPs, but this
Conservative Government have cut 4,700 GPs in the last decade.
Patients are finding it impossible to get a GP appointment in the
manner in which they want one. Seeing the same doctor for each
appointment means better care for patients, but under the Tories,
that is becoming rarer and rarer, much like seeing the same
Health Secretary at the Dispatch Box. Even his own Chancellor
wishes he had done more on the issue of continuity of care, so
why is this Secretary of State not matching Labour’s ambition to
bring back the family doctor?
First, as I have touched on, the number of GPs in training is up.
The number of GP appointments is significantly up, because there
is more patient demand, so they are seeing more patients. There
is often in this House a real focus on GP appointments, and that
is important, but it is about the skills of the primary care
workforce as a whole. If one looks, for example, at the women’s
health strategy, women want to be able to go to specialist
services, not always requiring the GP. It is about looking at the
primary care workforce as a whole, alongside the appointment of
GPs.
Workforce Shortages: Rural Areas
(Newton Abbot) (Con)
2. What recent discussions he has had with relevant stakeholders
on tackling health and care workforce shortages in rural areas.
(901946)
The Minister of State, Department of Health and Social Care
()
Ministers and officials regularly engage with a wide range of
organisations to ensure that we are alert to the staffing issues
facing the NHS and care sector across our country. We have
increased training places for doctors, nurses and allied health
professionals and increased access to clinical placements across
a wide range of settings. We have also developed apprenticeships
and blended learning opportunities to improve access to training
that supports remote and rural communities.
In Devon, workforce shortages are acute. One in 10 nursing places
remains unfilled, one in eight mental health roles across the
south-west is vacant, and there are no dental practices taking on
new NHS patients. That gap is too big to be bridged through
current training and recruitment plans. Will the Minister create
as a matter of urgency an innovative new career pathway, reducing
the time to get new staff to the frontline?
I thank my hon. Friend for her question. She is a passionate
campaigner on this issue. I recently responded to a debate on
this issue led by her. She also chairs the all-party
parliamentary group on rural health and social care. She is
right, and we have developed an apprenticeship route for almost
all professions in our NHS, allowing people to join the health
and care sector immediately on an earn-as-you-learn basis. We
continue to work hard to develop pathways into health and care
professions, including via our groundbreaking blended online
learning programmes.
(Strangford) (DUP)
In terms of district nursing and community midwifery, is the
Minister aware that there are real security concerns about
entering homes alone, and that that plays into resignations in
many rural areas? Will he address that by providing security
devices so that rural, isolated nurses and staff know that they
are not alone and are safe?
The hon. Gentleman raises an interesting point. It is not
something that has come across my desk in the two days I have had
this portfolio, but I will of course meet local integrated care
system leaders, and if it is something that they are calling for,
I will look to see what we can do to assist.
(Worcester) (Con)
Worcestershire and Herefordshire are rural areas that suffer from
a shortage of doctors at both primary and secondary levels. My
hon. Friend is an excellent Minister: will he meet me to discuss
the strong case for funding places at the Three Counties Medical
School in Worcester—a ready-made solution to the problem—which
has already seen 851 applications from home students?
I thank my hon. Friend for his compliment. He raises an important
issue. I know that my predecessor not only agreed to meet him,
but undertook to visit Worcester. I would be happy to make the
same commitment.
(Wirral South) (Lab)
Wirral and Cheshire have many rural areas, with all the same
problems that have been described. When I met healthcare
professionals on Friday, they were clear that the problem is not
just recruitment, it is also retention. Which of the changes that
have happened over the past 12 years to make working life for NHS
staff less good than it needs to be will he reverse?
Of course retention is as important as recruitment. Since
September, we have had the non-repayable training grant, which is
a minimum of £5,000 per academic year, additional funding for
certain courses, and extra funding worth up to £3,000 for
eligible students to cover childcare costs. That is, of course,
on recruitment. On retention, we are looking at more access to
mental health support and high-quality support while in training
and clinical placement, but of course there is more to do.
Mental Health Services
(Harrogate and Knaresborough)
(Con)
3. What steps he is taking to support people with mental health
conditions. (901947)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social
Care ()
The NHS long-term plan commits to investing at least an
additional £2.3 billion a year by the next financial year to
expand and transform mental health services in England. That will
be supported by an additional 27,000 mental health professionals
in the workforce to deliver that transformation.
I thank my hon. Friend for that answer. I recently met the child
and adolescent mental health services team in Harrogate, and they
confirmed that there are long waiting lists for attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder and autism diagnosis. Will the Minister
consider the criteria to help those who need the service most to
get the support they need?
I thank my hon. Friend, who raises a good point. He does a huge
amount of campaigning in Harrogate and Knaresborough on this
issue. We recognise there can be long waits for diagnosis both
for ADHD and autism, and that is why we refreshed our national
autism strategy last year, backed by more than £74 million to
help to reduce diagnosis waiting times. NHS England is now
setting out the process of how children, young people and adults
might receive a diagnostic assessment much more quickly.
(Kingston upon Hull West and
Hessle) (Lab)
Delayed discharge from mental health beds is preventing people
from getting the treatment that they need. In fact, in Humber NHS
trust 42% of learning disability beds are taken by people with
delayed discharge, 5.5% of secure beds have patients in waiting
for adult social care, as do 70% of adult mental health beds, 22%
of CAMHS beds and 27% of community beds. To deal with the problem
in mental health, we need to deal with the problem of lack of
adult social care placements. When will the Government be able to
fix that?
The Government actually started working on the plans around
delayed discharges this summer, because of course they affect
mental health services. They also affect a range of acute beds.
With the winter coming, we know that there will be additional
pressure on those beds, and that is why we are working with local
government social care services and integrated care boards which
have responsibility for that in their local areas.
(Tooting) (Lab)
In the last four weeks, there have been three investigations on
abuse in in-patient mental health settings. The Government should
be on top of the situation, not relying on undercover reports
from Sky, The Independent, or “Panorama” that show patients
languishing in seclusion, excessive use of restraints, bullying
and dehumanisation, and falsification of medical records.
Patients and their families rightly expect to be safe. Tory chaos
has meant that the Government have not engaged with abuse
allegations. For weeks there has been no functioning mental
health Minister. Will the Minister conduct a rapid review of
mental health services, respond to our concerns about in-patient
services and apologise to patients and their families now?
Of course we apologise for the cases that we have seen; anyone
who watched some of those programmes will have seen the
distressing and unacceptable care. I am the Minister with
responsibility not just for mental health but for patient safety,
so I will be looking at the cases in “Panorama” and other
programmes, and at cases across the board, because I want to
ensure that in-patient mental health services are as safe as
possible. We know that these are some of the most vulnerable
patients who often cannot speak out when there are problems. We
are looking at the staffing, training and reporting mechanisms.
On the case that was highlighted in “Panorama”, the Government
are working closely with NHS England, the Care Quality Commission
and the individual trusts.
Endometriosis
(Sheffield, Brightside and
Hillsborough) (Lab)
4. What steps he is taking to improve diagnosis for people with
endometriosis. (901948)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social
Care ()
Gynaecological conditions, including endometriosis, are a
priority in the women’s health strategy, which we published in
the summer. We are committed to improving care for women with
endometriosis and are particularly looking at the patient
experience and journey from first seeing their GP through to
diagnosis.
Last week, the all-party parliamentary group on endometriosis
heard from many different women about their shocking experiences
of getting diagnosed and treated. Despite the very good women’s
health strategy, they are not seeing that on the frontline. Long
waiting times, poor care and disbelief from medical professionals
are all still too prevalent for women with endometriosis.
Commitments in the women’s health strategy are long overdue and
women are not fully feeling those benefits. When can we expect to
see real progress to back that up and end this national scandal
once and for all?
I thank the hon. Lady for her question. The Government introduced
the first women’s health strategy to make issues such as
endometriosis a high priority. Of course it will take time—we
published the strategy only in the summer—but work is happening
already. The women’s health ambassador is working to better
inform young women about the signs and symptoms of endometriosis,
so that they cannot be fobbed off with advice such as, “This is
just a normal period.” Better and mandatory training for
healthcare professionals in women’s health is being introduced
and we are working with the royal colleges to streamline the
referral process.
(Bosworth) (Con)
Early diagnosis in endometriosis and many other conditions is
important, so I welcome the news that a community diagnostic
centre was approved in Hinckley last week. That will bring MRI,
ultrasound and CT scans to the heart of my community, but we are
looking for more. For the likes of endometriosis, people
sometimes need to have a day case procedure. Will the Minister
meet me to discuss having a day case unit in Hinckley? A bid is
going through that I am keen to see ensured, so that we can get
the diagnosis of things such as endometriosis in the heart of my
community.
My hon. Friend campaigned hard for the CDC in Hinckley and I am
glad that he has been successful. Community diagnostic centres
will provide a range of tests to speed up the diagnosis process.
I am happy to meet him, because they are just the start of a huge
opportunity, particularly for conditions such as endometriosis,
to get diagnoses as soon as possible.
Cold Weather: Long-term Health Effects
(Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch
and Strathspey) (SNP)
5. What recent assessment he has made of the potential long-term
effects of cold weather over the winter on the health of (a)
children and (b) pensioners. (901949)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social
Care (Neil O’Brien)
Pensioners and children are particularly vulnerable to cold
weather, which is why we are spending £37 billion on our energy
support package. A typical household will save a third—£700—of
what they would have paid this winter. The 8 million
most-vulnerable households will get £1,200 in support this year
to help with the cost of living. The record block grant agreed at
the spending review will enable devolved Administrations to
provide further services to support those in need.
It is a fact that growing up and living in poor and cold housing
leads directly to bad health outcomes. The director of University
College London’s Institute of Health Equity, Sir Michael Marmot,
stated that the Government must act now, because
“we are facing a significant humanitarian crisis with thousands
losing their lives and millions of children’s development
blighted”.
That was before the Chancellor’s U-turn on the energy price
guarantee, which will mean that average household bills are
£4,000-plus a year, or more if they are off-gas grid. Does the
Minister think that is acceptable, or will he urge his colleagues
to do much more?
Neil O’Brien
I actually agree with the first part of the hon. Gentleman’s
point. That is why, as well as the huge direct support to
households, we are investing £12 billion in Help to Heat schemes
to help make people’s homes warmer and cheaper to heat, another
£1.1 billion in the home upgrade grant, and £500 million in the
sustainable warmth competition. We take this issue very
seriously, and colleagues at the Department for Levelling Up,
Housing and Communities are taking further actions to clamp down
on squalid housing.
(Chipping Barnet)
(Con)
Access to GP appointments is particularly important to help to
deal with winter pressures, so can the Minister update the House
on progress in implementing the improvements promised in October
last year to help GPs to expand to meet demand over the
winter?
Neil O’Brien
My right hon. Friend is so right, and she has been a powerful
champion on this issue. We have invested £1.5 billion to get an
extra 50 million GP appointments per year. The number of
appointments in September was up 7% compared with the same month
in 2019. We now have an extra 2,300 doctors working in primary
care compared with 2019, and an extra 19,300 primary care
professionals, on the way to the goal of 26,000 extra primary
care professionals. This is hugely important, we are investing in
it, and my right hon. Friend is right to campaign on it.
Mr Speaker
I call shadow Minister .
(Denton and Reddish)
(Lab)
We know that, if poorer communities cannot afford to heat their
homes, health inequalities will worsen significantly over the
winter months and beyond. Despite the seriousness of this issue,
the previous Health Secretary—that is the right hon. Member for
Suffolk Coastal (Dr Coffey), in case Members are struggling to
keep track—planned to ditch the Government’s long-promised health
disparities White Paper. Does the current Minister intend to do
the same? If he does, how will he seriously address the dreadful
health inequalities that have widened after 12 Tory years?
Neil O’Brien
The hon. Gentleman implies that I disagree with him about this.
In fact, the Government are working hard to clamp down on squalid
housing. That is exactly what we were doing in my previous
Department, DLUHC, and I have just mentioned some of the things
that we are doing: the £37 billion we are spending to help people
to meet the cost of living, the £15 billion of that that is
targeted on the very poorest households, and the £12 billion that
we are investing in making people’s houses easier to heat. We
will continue to tackle health disparities across the board.
Mr Speaker
We now come to SNP spokesperson, .
(Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
(SNP)
The NHS Confederation wrote to the former Chancellor raising its
concerns about rising energy costs and the knock-on effects on
health and on NHS services. We all know that this winter we will
see people making the choice between heating and eating. Both
routes will inevitably lead to more illness and worse health
outcomes, so what action are Ministers taking, with their
colleagues in Cabinet, to avoid this public health
catastrophe?
Neil O’Brien
We are taking the action that I have just been describing in
terms of direct support for households. Of course, because health
is devolved, we are also helping the devolved Administrations.
The Scottish Government, for example, receive £126 per person for
every £100 per person of equivalent UK Government spending in
England and Wales. That enables the Scottish Government to
provide extra help for those in need. It is another example, on
top of furlough and the energy support scheme, of how this
country is strongest when we all work together
constructively.
Mental Health Treatment Waiting Times
(North Tyneside) (Lab)
6. What estimate he has made of the average waiting time for
mental health treatment. (901950)
(Sheffield Central)
(Lab)
22. What estimate he has made of the average waiting time for
mental health treatment. (901969)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social
Care ()
Waiting time targets for adult talking therapies were exceeded in
2021-22, with 91.1% accessing those services within six weeks and
98.6% within 18 weeks.
Young people in the north-east potentially have to wait up to
three years for mental health treatment. Local Metro Radio
launched Charley’s campaign to get young people more timely
health support. The campaign is in memory of 12-year-old Charley
Patterson, who took her own life waiting for treatment. Labour
has a fully costed plan to guarantee mental health treatment
within a month of referral for patients who need it. Will the
Minister commit to adopting that target now?
I thank the hon. Lady for her campaign on this issue. I am very
sorry to hear of the tragic case of Charley Patterson. We
recognise that, particularly with the pandemic, there has been a
significant rise in mental health conditions for young people and
children. We are expanding services so that an additional 345,000
children and young people can access NHS mental health support,
and we are providing more support in colleges too. I am very
happy to meet the hon. Lady to discuss her campaign further.
When I recently visited Sheffield College, students told me about
the difficulty they face in accessing mental health services, and
it is the same every time I visit a school to talk to students
about the priorities for this place and for the Government.
According to Mind, one in six young people have a mental health
problem. We know that referrals for children and adolescents hit
record numbers this summer. Early intervention is crucial but is
simply not available. Young people are waiting months and months
for their first appointment with child and adolescent mental
health services after referral. There is a deepening crisis and,
frankly, what the Minister just described will not address it, so
what more will she do to ensure proper funding of mental health
services for young people?
I have highlighted that there are additional pressures—more
children and young people are coming forward with mental health
conditions—but I assure the hon. Gentleman that we are putting
early intervention directly into schools. Mental health support
teams now cover 26% of pupils, with the aim of going up to 35% of
pupils by April, and we intend to increase that further. So we
are getting in as early as possible. Over 420,000 children and
young people were treated through NHS-commissioned services in
the last financial year. There is more to be done, but we have
made a good start.
(Halesowen and Rowley Regis)
(Con)
There is a real danger that prioritisation of mental health
services is not what it was a few years ago. Does the Minister
agree that we need to take urgent action on workforce development
and other measures to increase capacity for mental health
services, so we do not let down the hundreds of thousands of
young people who are on the waiting lists? We need to take action
now.
I agree and we are taking action now. Our aim is to expand the
mental health workforce by an additional 27,000 healthcare
professionals by 2023-24. We have already seen an increase—almost
6,900 more full-time equivalent staff. The workforce are the key
to that, which is why are investing in them so heavily.
(South West Devon) (Con)
Waiting times to access mental health specialists in my area are
unacceptably high, and I am constantly told there is simply an
inability to recruit mental health specialists. I know the
Minister works very hard on this subject and she just mentioned
what we are doing over the next couple of years. What practical
steps can the Government take to ensure that, this year, 2022,
there are more mental health specialists available to serve my
constituents in Plymouth and south-west Devon?
My hon. Friend makes a good point. We have introduced standards
to measure waiting times because the situation is very diverse
across the country. NHS England is consulting on introducing five
new standards so we can keep track of where the gaps are.
Patients can also refer themselves to talking and psychological
therapies: over 1 million people have self-referred through the
NHS website without having to go and see their GP, so they can
get direct access and support when they need it.
Local Dental Provision
(Bolsover) (Con)
7. What steps his Department has taken to help improve local
dental provision. (901952)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social
Care (Neil O’Brien)
During the pandemic, we provided £1.7 billion to protect dental
services. Now, through the improvements announced in the summer
and our recent plan for patients, we will pay dentists more
fairly and improve access for patients. We are enabling practices
to deliver more activity than they are contracted to deliver—up
to 110%—practices will have to keep their NHS website details
updated, making them easier to find, and we are enabling dentists
and their wider teams to work to their full scope of practice,
improving access. The number of dentists doing NHS work increased
by over 530 last year, but there is much more to do.
The Minister is aware that recent Local Government Association
analysis showed that Bolsover has some of the worst dentist
provision in the UK. That is highlighted by constituents to me
daily. Whether it is getting access to treatment or even
registering for an NHS practice, my constituents are struggling.
Will the Minister take a look at that and meet me so we can
discuss what more we can do for dentistry in Bolsover?
Neil O’Brien
Absolutely. My hon. Friend has been a formidable campaigner on
this issue. I know he met the Secretary of State to talk about it
in the summer. It is a pleasure to have talked to him already and
I am happy to meet with him further. Seven Derbyshire dental
providers have been commissioned to deliver extra weekend
activity to improve access this winter and, nationally, we are
exploring how to incentivise dentists to work in areas where
getting an NHS dentist is proving challenging.
(Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)
Effective dental provision is essential not only for quality of
life but for nutrition and confidence. Indeed, not being able to
access it at important points in life is storing up more trouble
for later, yet nine out of 10 dentists are not accepting NHS
patients and, with the soaring cost of living, my constituents
cannot afford dental treatment. What will the Minister say to
them and do to address the millions who cannot get the dental
treatment that they need?
Neil O’Brien
The hon. Lady asks a powerful question. As well as the reforms
that we started this summer and I announced in our plan for
patients, as we start to think about the next dental contract, we
are thinking about all the different things we can do to
incentivise dentists to work in particularly poorer areas where
there is difficulty accessing services. We are also working with
the General Dental Council to review the processes that overseas
dentists have to complete before they start to provide NHS care,
which are sometimes more arduous than those for doctors. We are
also thinking about the internal market of the UK and making it
easier for dentists in Scotland to practise in England as
well.
Dame (Basingstoke) (Con)
I welcome the shift in responsibility for NHS dental services in
my area to my local Hampshire integrated care board. That will
bring a real improvement by focusing on local priorities, rather
than the previous regional approach. Will my hon. Friend join me
in encouraging ICBs to ensure that they adequately fund dental
services, especially for elderly people and children? Dental
health is as much of a priority as any other aspect of our
health.
Neil O’Brien
My right hon. Friend is absolutely right. The shift to ICBs is
right and it is an opportunity to integrate services in a way
that has not been done before. She is right to stress the
important preventive role that dentistry can play, which also
reduces demand on other services, including accident and
emergency.
(Southampton, Test)
(Lab)
A constituent of mine recently rang the national health contact
centre about the possibility of an NHS dentist in Southampton and
was told not only that no dentists in Southampton were taking on
patients but that no one within 25 miles of Southampton was
taking on patients either. What does the Minister have to say to
my constituent, who has no prospect of a dentist now and no
prospect of a dentist remotely in the future?
Neil O’Brien
That is extremely concerning. This year, in NHS Hampshire and
Isle of Wight ICB, there were 1,255 active dentists, compared
with 1,248 the previous year. However, there is clearly an issue,
which the hon. Gentleman was right to raise in the House. I am
happy to talk to him more about that offline to ensure that we
can solve that important problem.
Nursing Workforce: Recruitment and Retention
(East Lothian) (Alba)
8. What recent representations he has received on recruitment and
retention of the nursing workforce. (901953)
The Minister of State, Department of Health and Social Care
()
We are on target to meet the 50,000 nurses manifesto commitment,
with nursing numbers more than 29,000 higher in August this year
than they were in September 2019 and more than 9,100 higher than
in August last year. We are working across a range of delivery
partners to invest in and diversify our training pipeline,
conduct ethical international recruitment, improve retention and
support return to practice.
Cancer services are buckling both sides of the border and
workforce challenges remain the biggest barrier to reducing
waiting lists and meeting need. Will the Minister ensure that the
long-term workforce plan being developed by NHS England gives
consideration to the plans being prepared by NHS Scotland to
minimise duplication and try to ensure the best possible patient
outcomes in both countries?
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. We remain absolutely
committed to growing and supporting our vital NHS workforce. In
addition to the work already in place to continue growing the
workforce, we have, as he mentioned, commissioned NHS England to
develop a long-term plan for the workforce, looking at the next
15 years. It is important that we do that in tandem and I will
have conversations—I think later this week—with my counterpart in
the Scottish Government.
(Norwich North) (Con)
Workforce does matter enormously to backlogs and cancer backlogs
in particular. I have come here straight from a mammogram two
years after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Luckily, I am in
rude health. [Hon. Members: “Hear, hear.”] However, for my
constituents, the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS
Foundation Trust has met cancer referral targets only once in the
last three years. Staff are working extremely hard, including by
running more clinics and scaling up services. Will the Minister
support the trust to reduce waiting times for my constituents for
tests, results and treatment?
I thank my right hon. Friend for her question and I look forward
to visiting Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital as soon as
possible. She rightly raises cancer referrals. Cancer referrals
from GPs are now at 127% of pre-pandemic levels. Cancer treatment
levels are at over 107% of pre-pandemic levels, with nine out of
10 people starting treatment within a month. However, as she
rightly points out, there is variance across the country and,
where trusts have more challenging statistics, we need to address
them.
Moving Patients into Social Care
(Warrington South) (Con)
9. What steps he is taking to help move patients who no longer
need acute care from hospitals into social care settings.
(901954)
The Minister of State, Department of Health and Social Care
()
When a patient no longer needs acute hospital care, they are
usually better off outside hospital and that frees up their bed
for somebody else. Delayed discharges are nothing new, but they
have been getting worse in part because of the shortage of social
care. That is why the Government have announced £500 million to
speed up discharges from hospital into social care this
winter.
Warrington is at least 90 beds short in terms of step-down care.
A local hospital has too many long-term patients who simply
cannot be discharged because there is nowhere for them to go. I
am told there is capital funding available. We have two local NHS
trusts, a local authority and the integrated care board, which is
no longer in Warrington but now in Liverpool, but no action is
being taken. Will the Minister come to Warrington to meet local
NHS leaders and me, so we can secure access for patients who are
spending too long in acute hospital care?
My hon. Friend is absolutely right about patients spending too
long in acute care in his own hospital. We know this is affecting
other people around the country. I am very happy to meet him and
I would very much like to visit his hospital and speak to his
NHS, the local authority and other stakeholders to ensure we can
improve the situation.
(Worsley and Eccles South)
(Lab)
Tony Hickmott is an autistic man who was detained in an
in-patient unit for 22 years, often in near total seclusion,
against his wishes and those of his parents, Pam and Roy. Tony
now has his own home in the community, but the NHS spent £11
million on his detention in the last nine years after doctors
considered him fit for discharge. Can the Minister comment on the
wasted years Tony and his family spent fighting to get him free?
What will she do to release the 2,000 other autistic people and
people with learning disabilities detained in in-patient settings
who would receive far more effective care in the community?
The hon. Member raises Tony’s individual case, which is very hard
to hear about. She and I know there are too many others in this
situation. She will know, too, that I listened to this when I was
formerly a Health Minister. It is a difficult problem to solve,
but we should absolutely continue to work with the NHS, the Care
Quality Commission and local authorities to ensure people who are
not benefiting from being in in-patient settings are able to get
the care and support they need in the community.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister, .
(Leicester West) (Lab)
The previous Health Secretary promised £500 million social care
discharge funding for this winter, but it is 1 November and not a
single penny of that money has been seen. I am afraid that the
political chaos and incompetence over the last few weeks means
that local services cannot properly plan and thousands more
elderly people are trapped in hospitals when they do not need to
be, with all the knock-on consequences for the rest of the NHS.
Will the Minister now tell us: is this money still available?
When will it be released? Can she guarantee that it will be
genuinely new funding, not found from cuts made elsewhere?
I am sure the hon. Member heard the answer I gave a moment ago to
a similar question. I absolutely acknowledge the challenge of
discharges. The challenge is nothing new, but it has indeed
worsened, in part due to the availability of social care. That is
one reason why the Government have announced the £500 million
discharge fund. I am just a few days into this
job—[Interruption.] I am looking at the proposals on how this
will—[Interruption.] If she will listen, I am looking to make
sure that we allocate that money effectively, because we know
that money is tight and we must absolutely make sure that every
penny of the funding is well spent on improving the discharge
from hospital to people’s homes.
Menopause
(Swansea East) (Lab)
10. When he plans to respond to the all-party parliamentary group
on menopause’s report on the impact of menopause. (901957)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social
Care ()
I am very grateful to the hon. Lady for all her work on issues
around the menopause and to all those on the all-party group on
menopause for their work. I have read her report and the 13
recommendations. The Government are already working on many of
those, from the cost of hormone replacement therapy through to
supporting women in the workplace.
The lack of information about symptoms is a recognised barrier to
diagnosis. As a result, only 14% of the 13 million menopausal
women in the UK have a diagnosis and are accessing treatment.
More resource, training and awareness are urgently needed. Will
the Government listen to the APPG’s recommendations and commit to
a menopause-specific health check for all women?
The hon. Lady is right about the lack of awareness. Awareness is
increasing through her campaign and the campaigns of many others.
That is why we are seeing a significant rise in the number of
women being prescribed HRT, but there is more work to be done. I
am looking through the 13 recommendations from her report, and I
am very happy, when we meet regularly, to discuss that
further.
GP Recruitment
(Eltham) (Lab)
11. What progress his Department has made on recruiting 6,000
more GPs by 2024. (901958)
The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care ()
We are making progress on increasing numbers. The number of
doctors in general practice has increased over the past three
years, from 34,729 in September 2019 to more than 37,000 in
September this year.
I am grateful for that answer. I recently met representatives of
the local GP network in my constituency who described to me their
difficulties in employing GPs. What can the Secretary of State do
to ensure that people choose to go into general practice and to
make the job much more attractive, so that he hits his target of
recruiting 6,000 more GPs, which he is woefully way off
doing?
I touched on that exact point in an earlier answer. There are
parts of the country where it is more difficult to recruit GPs;
that is why we have a targeted fund to attract people into those
areas, with grants of up to £20,000. Alongside the appointment of
GPs, we are also looking at using the wider primary care skills
workforce, so that people can get to the appointment that they
need.
(Witham) (Con)
Will my right hon. Friend tell me how patients in the Witham
constituency will benefit from the really important investment in
more GPs and more GP training? And if he cannot tell me today,
will he write to me about the progress being made on the Witham
health hub, through which more health workers and GPs need to
come together to serve the local community?
I am grateful for that question. The plan for patients, which was
set out by my predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for
Suffolk Coastal (Dr Coffey), addressed the issue that my right
hon. Friend the Member for Witham () raises on behalf of her
constituents. That includes how people make an informed choice
about which practice is best for them, how we make it easier for
them to book an appointment and how we harness technology
better—in particular, the very significant number of patients,
including in Witham, who will have downloaded the NHS app and
will be able to access services through it from this month.
Topical Questions
Harriett Baldwin (West Worcestershire) (Con)
T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental
responsibilities.(901970)
The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care ()
It is an honour to return to the Department of Health and Social
Care to continue its important work, especially ahead of the
challenges this winter. I pay tribute to my predecessor, my right
hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk Coastal (Dr Coffey), for
everything that she has done to get the system ready for the
challenges ahead. I welcome my experienced ministerial team to
their posts and thank Ministers from the summer. I am also
looking forward to robust, I am sure, but—based on our previous
experience—very constructive engagement with Opposition Front
Benchers.
I am pleased that all GP practices will soon be able to
automatically provide patients aged 16 and over with access to
the latest information and their health records through the NHS
app. We are switching on that ability from today in a process
that we expect to be completed by the end of the month. That is
an important milestone for patient empowerment and is part of a
process that sees patients play an even more active role in
managing their health and care. I hope that Members across the
House will welcome that on behalf of patients.
I congratulate the Secretary of State on his reappointment. Will
he reiterate the importance of getting ambulance waiting times
down? Would he endorse the use of minor injuries units in
community hospitals, such as those in Malvern and Tenbury, as a
very effective way to open up access through other routes for our
constituents?
My hon. Friend raises an important point, particularly for
category 3 and 4 ambulance journeys. As she highlights, there are
numerous aspects to the challenge of ambulance delays: the
blockage in the flow from social care and delayed discharge,
which we have debated many times in the House; issues in accident
and emergency with pre-cohorting, post-cohorting and triaging
nurses; conveyance rates, which often vary significantly between
ambulance trusts; call handling, which we have put additional
money into; and the work of the auxiliary service. My hon. Friend
is quite right that within the portfolio of options, minor
injuries units are an area that can help to relieve pressure on
busy A&Es.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
(Ilford North) (Lab)
I welcome the Secretary of State back and welcome his team, but I
have had boxes of cereal with a longer shelf-life than
Conservative Secretaries of State. As a consequence of the
turnover and chaos, the truth is that the NHS is not prepared for
this winter—it cannot even get allocated funds out of the
door.
Let us turn to the future. Over the summer, the Prime Minister
promised to establish a “vaccines-style taskforce” to tackle the
Conservatives’ NHS backlog on “day one” and to have overall
waiting list numbers falling by next year. May I ask the
Secretary of State who is on that taskforce, how many times it
has met and what its programme of work is?
I am grateful that the hon. Gentleman raises the issue of
vaccines; in fact, I raised it in Cabinet today. The UK is the
first country in the world to have introduced bivalent vaccines
targeted both at omicron and at the original strain of covid-19.
We have now made the covid vaccine and the flu vaccine available
to all over-50s; I hope that Members across the House will
promote that. I think the UK can be very proud of its work to
roll out vaccines against both covid and flu, which are a key
part of preventing some of the pressure on our A&Es.
I can forgive the Secretary of State for mishearing the question,
but what I find unbelievable is that it seems as if this is the
first time he has heard about the Prime Minister’s own proposed
taskforce to deal with the Conservatives’ NHS backlog. That is
what the Prime Minister promised, and that is what I asked the
Secretary of State about. This is obviously another case of the
Conservatives over-promising and under-delivering.
If the Secretary of State cannot stand by the Prime Minister’s
pledges, what about the views of the man next door? When we
announced our policy to train a new generation of doctors and
nurses, paid for by abolishing non-doms, it was welcomed by the
Chancellor as—and I quote—“something I very much hope the
government also adopts on the basis that smart governments always
nick the best ideas of their opponents.” In the spirit of
constructive opposition that the Secretary of State asks for,
Labour has a plan to tackle the staffing crisis. The
Conservatives do not. It is fully costed and paid for, so will he
nick it?
The hon. Gentleman skirts over the fact that it is this
Government who have opened five new medical schools, who have
significantly boosted medical undergraduate training, who are
investing more in our NHS as per the long-term plan, who have
invested a further £36 billion as part of our covid response, and
who are investing in technology and the skills of the workforce
as a whole. We are boosting the number of medical trainees and—I
touched on this question earlier—we are also boosting the number
of doctors in training to be GPs.
(Gainsborough) (Con)
T2. At a face-to-face surgery this weekend, a constituent
mentioned the difficulties that a relative of hers, who has
subsequently died, had had in getting a face-to-face GP
appointment at a surgery run by an American company called
Centene, which now covers 600,000 patients. Will the Government
insist that we are fully committed to the traditional approach of
a committed and caring family doctor seeing patients face to
face, and that we will not allow GP surgeries to be fully
commercialised?(901971)
My right hon. Friend raises an important point about face-to-face
care, which matters to many constituents, but I gently remind him
that in the Lincolnshire integrated care system, 71.9% of
appointments were face to face in September 2022. It is not the
case that every patient wants a face-to-face appointment; there
can be instances in which an online service is better. For
patients facing domestic violence, for example, it can often
provide a much more convenient service.
Mr Speaker
Order. I know we are bedding back in, but Front Benchers have to
think about Back Benchers. These are their questions as well, so
please let us make sure that I can call as many of them as
possible.
(Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
(SNP)
The Scottish Government introduced new national guidelines to
make it easier for retiring NHS staff to return to support the
NHS, while drawing their pensions. However, there is a
substantive issue of pension tax rules pushing senior clinicians
to reduce their commitments or retire early. As we know, pension
taxation is a wholly reserved matter, so will the Minister
address this issue with Cabinet colleagues in order to find a
permanent solution that will allow us to help the NHS retain
senior staff?
Pensions are an important issue, and I shall be meeting the
Chancellor later today.
(Ashford) (Con)
T4. More than 13,000 people who are in hospital today would be
out of hospital if the care system had the necessary capacity,
and most of them could go back to their own homes if we had
enough domiciliary care workers. Can the Secretary of State
assure me, and the House, that he will produce a proper workforce
plan for the care sector as a matter of urgency?(901973)
Very much so. The hon. Member for Ilford North () asked about a taskforce. With our colleagues in
NHS England, we launched a “delayed discharge” taskforce with a
“100-day challenge” over the summer; we have also set up an
international recruitment taskforce within the Department to
prioritise the establishment of a “clearing house for care”. I
will not add further to my answer, other than to say that this is
a key area of focus.
Wera Hobhouse (Bath) (LD)
T3. I recently visited a local GP surgery which is short of a
third of the staff that it needs. Surgeries are finding it
increasingly difficult to retain staff owing to stress and
burnout. Do the Government recognise that it is stress and
burnout that make it so difficult for us to retain GPs in their
profession, and for them to retain their staff? If so, what on
earth are they going to do about it?(901972)
The wellbeing of staff—especially in the NHS, and especially
after the pressure of the pandemic—is a crucial issue, and one on
which I have focused in particular since returning to the
Department. I look forward to having discussions about it with
the hon. Lady.
David Johnston (Wantage) (Con)
T6. Last year I raised with the Department worrying data from
the Alzheimer's Society about the number of care home residents
with dementia who were being prescribed anti-psychotic drugs when
they did not have a psychosis diagnosis. Can my hon. Friend
provide an update on the current levels of
prescribing?(901975)
The Minister of State, Department of Health and Social Care
()
I have shared my hon. Friend’s concern about this issue in the
past, and I know he has taken a long-term interest in it. We must
ensure that people living with dementia are prescribed
anti-psychotic medication only when it is clinically
appropriate., and NHS England is actively monitoring the
position. I have already asked for the latest data, and I will be
keeping a close eye on it.
(Edinburgh North and Leith)
(SNP)
T5. The Secretary of State says that he is boosting GP trainee
numbers, but according to the Royal College of General
Practitioners, 49% of the more than 40% of GP trainees who are
international graduates have reported visa processing problems
and 17% are considering leaving the UK altogether, taking their
desperately needed skills elsewhere. Why are the UK Government
hamstringing the NHS with red tape, and what is the Secretary of
State doing to sort this out with ministerial
colleagues?(901974)
Across the clinical workforce—whether we are talking about
dentistry, nursing, social care or doctors—we are seeking to
boost recruitment, including international recruitment, and to
remove red tape. Within the GP population, however, we are
looking at retention, recruitment and boosting the number of
trainees.
(Carshalton and Wallington)
(Con)
T7. The Government have given Epsom and St Helier University
Hospitals NHS Trust the green light to get on with improving St
Helier and building a new hospital in Sutton. We know that the
pandemic has had an effect on timetables, so will my hon. Friend
facilitate a meeting between his Department, the Treasury and the
trust to ensure that we can get a planning application in by the
end of the year?(901977)
The Minister of State, Department of Health and Social Care
()
We are fully committed to delivering a new hospital in Sutton,
one of the 40 new hospitals to be built by 2030. Officials from
the Department and the NHS are working closely with the trust at
every step in the process, and I look forward to working with my
hon. Friend to deliver this much-needed hospital improvement.
(Tiverton and Honiton)
(LD)
T8. In rural areas such as the west country, NHS dentistry is
more of a distant memory than a vital service. Does the Minister
agree that more must be done to boost NHS dental services in
rural areas, and will he commit himself to reforming the NHS
dental services contract to ensure that it meets patient need and
properly incentivises dentists to take on NHS
patients?(901978)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social
Care (Neil O’Brien)
In the hon. Gentleman’s local NHS this year there were 758 active
NHS dentists, up from 736 in the previous year. I have already
mentioned some of the steps we are taking to tackle the problem
of dental deserts and ensure that everyone in the country can see
the dentists—and the GPs—whom they need to see.
(Sittingbourne and
Sheppey) (Con)
Members of the Kent and Medway integrated care board are doing
their best to recruit more GPs, but they are finding it difficult
to attract them to our area. One reason is their close proximity
to London, where newly qualified GPs can earn thousands of pounds
more than they can if they practise in Kent. Will my right hon.
Friend consider extending the NHS London weighting allowance to
Kent and Medway?
Part of the reason for having the targeted funding is so that
ICSs can look at those areas under particular pressure for
recruitment and do that on a place-based basis. It would be
interesting to look at the evidence, but I know that the fund has
been used by my hon. Friend’s local ICS.
(Nottingham East) (Lab)
T9. Care workers were already struggling to get by on wages that
hardly pay the bills, and now, with an escalating cost of living
crisis, care workers in Nottingham and beyond are being pushed
deeper into poverty. Does the Secretary of State back trade union
calls for a £15 an hour minimum wage for care workers, and what
steps is he taking to make this a reality?(901979)
Care workers should be properly paid for what they do, the skills
they bring and the compassion they bring to their work. That
includes being paid at least the national living wage, which was
increased by 6.6% in April. I am also increasing the Care Quality
Commission’s oversight of local authority commissioning, and we
have created a £1.36 billion market sustainability and fair cost
of care fund, which will ensure that local authorities always pay
a fair cost of care.
(Wimbledon) (Con)
Early access to scans and testing can prevent more serious
illness, improve health outcomes, reduce health inequalities and
reduce pressure on the acute sector. Will my right hon. Friend
prioritise increasing the number of diagnostic centres across the
United Kingdom and support my campaign for the establishment of
one in Wimbledon town centre?
My hon. Friend is right to say that we are supporting the NHS to
deliver up to 160 community diagnostic centres by March 2025, 89
of which are already operational, as part of £2.3 billion of
capital funding, delivering around 2 million additional scans so
far. Community diagnostic centres are closer to people’s homes in
the hearts of communities, and they will help us not just to
reduce and bust the covid backlogs but to tackle health
inequalities.
(Easington) (Lab)
As we get older, many of us—individually or our close family and
their immediate family—will be touched by cancer. Can the
Minister confirm when the 10-year cancer plan will be published
in full, and will the Minister agree to meet me and a small
delegation from the all-party parliamentary group on radiotherapy
to hear more from the experts on the frontline about how we can
use this technology to improve cancer outcomes?
Sadly, cancer takes far too many people before their time, and
the Government are determined to improve cancer outcomes in the
short term and the long term. I am very happy to meet the hon.
Gentleman to discuss this further.
(Mid Derbyshire) (Con)
What steps is the Minister taking to improve health outcomes and
early diagnosis for people with aortic dissections?
I know that my hon. Friend has a real understanding of this
particular challenge. In March 2022, NHS England launched an
aortic dissection toolkit to support the implementation of robust
clinical pathways to identify and manage type A and type B aortic
dissection, and English regions are working with the cardiac
pathways improvement programme to improve diagnosis and
treatment.
(Barnsley Central) (Lab)
Tens of thousands of NHS workers are entirely dependent on the
use of their car to do their vital job, but while petrol prices
have rocketed, NHS mileage rates have remained frozen since 2011.
Will the Secretary of State look at what can be done to increase
NHS mileage rates?
That fits within the wider issue of how we work with and support
our NHS workforce and what packages we can look at in discussion
with Treasury colleagues. Of course, the approach to the NHS is
also in line with other Government Departments, but the hon.
Gentleman raises an important point and it is obviously one that
Ministers discuss.
(Erewash) (Con)
With flu cases on the rise, what action is my right hon. Friend
taking to ensure that all parents are aware that they can access
the free nasal vaccine at their GP surgery for all pre-school
children?
Neil O’Brien
My hon. Friend’s question gives me an opportunity to thank her
for her fantastic work on vaccinations and our world-leading
roll-out of vaccines across the country. She has also provided an
opportunity to remind everyone of the opportunity to get those
life-saving vaccines this winter and to get boosted.
(Bristol South) (Lab)
This month a care provider in my constituency is closing, citing
the workforce crisis. I have listened carefully to the Ministers’
answers, and the current Chancellor spent the last year telling
us about the critical need for a workforce strategy. The door is
open. Has the Secretary of State had a conversation with the new
Chancellor to ask for a workforce plan on which we can all
rely?
As I said, I am meeting the Chancellor later today.
(Stoke-on-Trent North)
(Con)
Forty per cent. of GP appointments are now related to mental
health. That is why and I launched the
cross-party “No Time to Wait” campaign, which had the support of
the Prime Minister when he was Chancellor. We have a fully costed
plan with the Royal College of Nursing to pilot such a scheme. Is
the Secretary of State willing to meet James and me?
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social
Care ()
I thank my hon. Friend for his suggestion. We are committed to
boosting the mental health workforce, and I am happy to meet him
to discuss his suggestions.
(Livingston) (SNP)
My constituent Wilma Ord and her daughter Kirsteen are victims of
the Primodos hormone pregnancy drug. Will the Minister update me
on where the Government are in getting justice and compensation
for the affected families? Many people have died. Will she meet
me and other families and representatives from the campaign group
to get justice for these families? They have waited far too
long.
As the hon. Lady knows, there is an ongoing legal case about
Primodos, but I am very happy to meet her and the campaigners
because I am keen to hear their experience. Unfortunately, I
cannot comment further while there is an ongoing legal case.
(Bromley and Chislehurst)
(Con)
I refer to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial
Interests. Last Saturday was World Stroke Day. Will my right hon.
Friend the Secretary of State commend the work of the Stroke
Association and its “saving brains” campaign? And will he meet
members of the all-party parliamentary group on stroke to discuss
how we can increase the provision of life-saving thrombectomy
services across England and Wales?
I am very happy to commend the work of the Stroke Association,
and I would be delighted to meet my hon. Friend to discuss this
further.
(Ealing Central and Acton)
(Ind)
A respected woman pharmacist in my constituency, with a lifetime
of NHS experience, went solo with her own practice in the hope
and expectation of an NHS licence, which she has been denied.
Will the Secretary of State look into the opaque decision-making
process? Our increasing population otherwise means increasing
demand, and my constituent cannot survive on private alone.
I am very happy to look at this case.
(Chatham and Aylesford)
(Con)
Suicide is the biggest killer of under-35s in the UK, with more
than 200 school-aged children taking their own life every year,
including two, very sadly, in my constituency in recent months.
We have heard about the pressures on mental health services, so
will the Secretary of State look at alternative ways of
supporting mental health by meeting the 3 Dads team and his
counterpart in the Department for Education to discuss how we can
embed age-appropriate suicide awareness and prevention in
schools?
Part of the reason why we are putting an extra £2.3 billion into
mental health is to recognise the sensitivity and the importance
of this issue. I am very happy to look at all practical
suggestions. The tragedy for constituents is something that
unites the House. In particular, I will look at what technology
can do to support people.
(Stretford and Urmston)
(Lab)
The New Statesman has reported that the spend on Healthy Start
has fallen by two thirds in the last decade, and this afternoon I
will be presenting a Bill that would help to increase take-up.
Will the Secretary of State or one of his team meet me to discuss
the details of what campaigners and I are proposing so that we
can make this helpful benefit reach more of the families it is
intended to benefit?
I am very happy to ensure that the ministerial team engages with
the hon. Lady. I take this opportunity to commend my right hon.
Friend the Member for South Northamptonshire (Dame ), who has done a huge amount
of work on early years, which dovetails with this important
issue.
(Darlington) (Con)
Following a recent unannounced inspection by the Care Quality
Commission, some services at Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys mental
health trust have improved, but the trust’s overall rating
remains “requires improvement.” Can my right hon. Friend assure
me and my constituents in Darlington that his Department will
keep a laser-like focus on the trust and that he will do
everything in his power to ensure the trust carries out the
improvements that are so desperately needed?
I thank my hon. Friend for raising this important issue. I
understand he recently wrote to the Secretary of State, and we
will respond shortly. NHS England and the North East and North
Cumbria integrated care board have commissioned an intensive
support team review of the trust, and I will keep him updated. He
is right to make sure that we keep this high on the agenda.
(Glasgow East) (SNP)
Children who are born premature or sick are often discharged from
neonatal care with energy-intensive equipment, such as oxygen
machines, which has an impact in terms of the cost of living
crisis. Is the Secretary of State willing to meet Bliss and
myself to look at the costs faced by families who come out of
neonatal care and how we can support them better?
The Bliss charity is recognised across the House for the
extremely important work it does, and I know that the ministerial
team will be happy to engage with the hon. Gentleman on how we
can work on the matter he raises.
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