Simon Burns: This is a matter for the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) as an independent body. NICE'S ‘Guide to the single technology appraisal process’ describes the arrangements for publication of draft or final guidance following an Appraisal Committee meeting and is available at: www.nice.org.uk/media/42D/B3/STAGuideLrFinal.pdf
Simon Burns: Information on medical technologies for which guidance is currently being developed by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) Medical Technologies Advisory Committee is available at: http://guidance.nice.org.uk/Type/MT/InDevelopment
Simon Burns: The right to drugs and treatments recommended by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence is set out in the National Health Service Constitution. All NHS bodies and providers are already required by law to have regard to the NHS constitution and the Government are taking further steps through the current Health and Social Care Bill; Subject to parliamentary approval, the Bill...
Simon Burns: The effect of removing the private patient income cap for national health service foundation trusts is considered in the Government's Command Paper, ‘Liberating the NHS: Legislative framework and next steps’, and the impact assessments so far published for the Health and Social Care Bill 2011.
Simon Burns: In general, including in national health service hospitals, the supply of medicines is regulated through the Medicines Act 1968 and the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, as well as registration of health care providers with the Care Quality Commission and professional regulation. In July 2011, the Department issued a reminder notice to NHS chief executives and pharmaceutical officers, through its...
Simon Burns: The information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Simon Burns: Providers of regulated activities have to comply with registration requirements including one on meeting nutritional needs and are therefore responsible for delivering nutritional care. Where a provider is not meeting this requirement the Care Quality Commission (CQC) can take action to bring about improvement needed to ensure compliance with legal requirements. The Chief Executive of the CQC...
Simon Burns: The information is not held centrally. Commissioners are encouraged to share their Commissioning for Quality and Innovation schemes at the website of the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement: www.institute.nhs.uk/world_class_commissioning/pct_portal/cq uin.html
Simon Burns: Clinical commissioning groups will in future commission the majority of national health service services. This includes the commissioning of community-based tissue viability services. The proposed NHS Commissioning Board would commission services it would not be appropriate for clinical commissioning groups to commission, such as primary care, and national and regional specialised services...
Simon Burns: The majority of primary care trust (PCT) revenue funding is allocated to PCTs via their revenue allocations. Of over £102 billion in total revenue investment in the national health service announced for 2011-12, the majority of the PCT revenue budget, £89 billion, was allocated to PCTs in December 2010. This funding included an increase of £1.9 billion in PCT recurrent allocations...
Simon Burns: The Specialised Services Patient and Public Engagement Steering Group includes patient interest group representation from: the Specialised Healthcare Alliance (representing a range of patient interest groups covering most of the National Specialised Services Definition Set), the Genetic Alliance UK (a national charity of over 130 patient organisations supporting all those affected by genetic...
Simon Burns: A key aim of the Specialised Services Patient and Public Engagement Steering Group is to ensure that there is stakeholder involvement in the co-design and co-production of the future model for engaging patients and the public in the commissioning of specialised services through the NHS Commissioning Board. The Director of the Specialised Healthcare Alliance sits on the Specialised Services...
Simon Burns: When establishing the Specialised Services Patient and Public Engagement Steering Group, the Department was mindful of the need to ensure broad representation from a range of different stakeholder interests without making the steering group so unwieldy that it would have problems discharging its functions. As such, in consultation with Specialised Services Commissioners, the Specialised...
Simon Burns: The Richmond Group comprises 10 large charities across a range of health and social care issues. Brought together by the Department as part of the Quality, Innovation, Productivity and Prevention programme, they have formed an identity of their own. The group membership is Age UK, Asthma UK, Breakthrough Breast Cancer, British Heart Foundation, British Lung Foundation, Diabetes UK, Macmillan...
Simon Burns: Data held by the National Patient Safety Agency shows that from April 2009 to March 2010, there were 47,645 surgical incidents resulting in harm reported to the National Reporting and Learning System (NRLS). From April 2010 to March 2011 there were 50,183 surgical incidents resulting in harm reported to the NRLS.
Simon Burns: On 26 January 2009, the National Patient Safety Agency issued a patient safety alert to the national health service in relation to the World Health Organization (WHO) Surgical Safety Checklist. This required the following actions: ensure an executive and a clinical lead are identified in order to implement the surgical safety checklist within the organisation; ensure the checklist is...
Simon Burns: Allocations for 2007-08 were announced in 2005 for North Warwickshire Primary Care Trust (PCT), Rugby PCT and South Warwickshire PCT. These PCTs merged to form Warwickshire PCT in 2006. The information requested is in the following tables: PCT 2007-08 PCT recurrent revenue allocations (£000) North Warwickshire 234,807 Rugby 113,435 South Warwickshire 303,964 Total 652,206...
Simon Burns: Information on management and administration costs for Warwickshire Primary Care Trust is shown in the following table: Managers and senior managers Administrative and clerical staff 2006-07 7,833 14,092 2007-08 4,803 10,814 2008-09 3,214 12,171 2009-10 1,530 15,693 Note: The figures represent expenditure on managers and senior managers and administrative and...
Simon Burns: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Hove (Mike Weatherley) on 22 November 2010, Official Report, column 426W.
Simon Burns: The Department considers all appropriate requests for reasonable adjustment and relies on professional occupational health advice to ensure agreed adjustments are suitable and beneficial. The Department does not hold central records of those staff who have a reasonable adjustment in place. Some adjustments are arranged by the local line management chain and can vary from very short-term...