theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_20
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_20

Michelle Welsh:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve safety within maternity services. \p Karin Smyth: The Government continues to work with the National Health Service as it delivers its three-year plan for maternity and neonatal services. The plan sets out how the NHS will make maternity and neonatal care safer, more personalised, and more equitable for women, babies, and families.

As part of the delivery plan, an updated version of the ‘Saving Babies Lives Care Bundle’ is being rolled out across England, which is a package of interventions aimed to reduce stillbirths, neonatal brain injury, neonatal death, and preterm birth, as well as initiatives to reduce inequalities. Additionally, 14 Maternal Medicine Networks have been developed across England to ensure that women with chronic and acute medical problems related to pregnancy have access to specialist management and care.

Additional funding has also been provided for Maternity and Neonatal Voice Partnerships to ensure local voices are used to inform decisions and services. All local leadership teams are taking part in a Perinatal Culture and Leadership Programme, helping them to develop and maintain a positive safety culture.

The Government is also currently piloting a training programme to help avoid brain injury in childbirth to improve safety for mothers and their babies. If successful, national rollout is expected to commence this year.

While good progress has been made, the Government recognises that there are real issues within maternity services. Whilst change will not happen overnight, we are determined to go further to ensure all women and babies receive the care they deserve, and we have committed to providing support to trusts failing on maternity care, recruit thousands of new midwives, and tackle the unacceptable inequalities that exist.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_21
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_21

Dr Simon Opher:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Health Mission Delivery Board has appointed external experts. \p Karin Smyth: We have established a cross-Government Health Mission Delivery Board to take forward work on the health mission. The core membership of the board is made up of key ministers including my Rt. Hon. Friends, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care as Chair and the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster as the Deputy Chair. Other attendees, including external partners, are invited according to the agenda.

Outside of the Mission Board, the Department is engaging with wider partners from across civil society, business and local government on the health mission, including through our engagement on the 10-Year Health Plan.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_22
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_22

Sojan Joseph:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the supply of HRT products in Kent. \p Karin Smyth: The Department manages medicine supply issues at a national level so that stocks remain available to meet regional and local demand. Information on stock levels within Kent is not held centrally.

There are over 70 hormone replacement therapy (HRT) products, and the vast majority are in good supply. Previously there has been issues with the supply of a limited number of these products, primarily driven by very sharp increases in demand. Following the Department’s intensive engagement with industry, the supply position has improved considerably. As part of this we have met with suppliers on a very regular basis and have held seven HRT supply roundtables since April 2022, with the most recent in September 2024, with suppliers, wholesalers, and community pharmacists, to provide updates on the supply position and actions being taken to address them, to share data, and to discuss relevant policy developments and potential impacts.

We are aware of the supply issues affecting Estradot (estradiol) 50 microgram/24 hour, 75 microgram/24 hour, and 100 microgram/24 hour patches, for which we have issued comprehensive management guidance to the National Health Service, including Serious Shortage Protocols allowing community pharmacists to supply the equivalent strength patch of an alternative brand without the need for a new prescription. Alternative brands of estradiol patches remain available. There are also shortages for Indivina® 1mg/2.5mg and 1mg/5mg tablets until mid-April and a discontinuation of Tridestra® tablets which we have also communicated to the NHS. Alternative combined continuous and cyclical preparations of oral HRT products remain available.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_23
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_23

Abtisam Mohamed:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with medical suppliers on the availability of Pancreatic Enzyme Replacement Therapy. \p Karin Smyth: The Department continues to engage with all suppliers of pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT) to boost production to mitigate the supply issue. Suppliers have managed to secure additional pharmaceutical ingredient resulting in expected increased volumes of PERT for 2025. The Department has also reached out to specialist importers who have sourced unlicensed stock to assist in covering the gap in the market and provided advice to clinicians on prescribing and ordering these imports.

In December 2024, the Department issued further management advice to healthcare professionals. This includes actions for clinicians to consider these unlicensed imports when licensed stock is unavailable and for integrated care boards to ensure local mitigation plans are put in place and implemented.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_24
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_24

Mr James Frith:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has targets for the time it takes to complete evaluations of new medicines. \p Karin Smyth: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) aims wherever possible to publish recommendations for the National Health Service on new medicines within 90 days of the date of a marketing authorisation. NICE uses key performance indicators to report on the timeliness of its technology appraisals. NICE has achieved a 28% improvement in the timeliness of its medicines appraisals since April 2024.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_25
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_25

Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support cardiology units in south Devon. \p Karin Smyth: At the end of November 2024, the cardiology waiting list in Devon Integrated Care Board stood at 11,228 with only 56% of those waiting 18 weeks or less for treatment. The Government has committed to returning to the Referral to Treatment (RTT) standard that patients can expect to be treated within 18 weeks by March 2029, with the expectation that RTT performance will increase to 65% by March 2026.

There is a concerted focus in Devon on improving cardiology services, with support from NHS England’s regional and national teams, after being identified as an area for action. As a result, the number of cardiology patients waiting over a year in Devon has fallen from 930 to 577, representing a 38% drop, in the past 18 months.

Cardiology is one of five priority specialties identified in the recently published Elective Reform Plan for significant elective reform. Reforms will include increasing specialist cardiology input earlier in patient care pathways and developing standard and efficient care pathways for common cardiology symptoms, such as palpitation. It also includes improving access to cardiac diagnostic tests, including through implementing more ‘straight to test’ pathways where the general practitioner can refer a patient directly to secondary care for a test which can reduce unnecessary outpatient appointments and improve waiting times even further for patients in south Devon and across England.

We are supporting National Health Service performance across elective and emergency care including for patients requiring urgent and elective cardiac care, with approximately £1.5 billion capital funding in total in 2025/26. Funding will provide new surgical hubs and diagnostic scanners to build capacity for over 30,000 additional procedures and over 1.25 million diagnostic tests as they come online, as well as new beds across the estate.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_26
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_26

Luke Taylor:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the NHS 10-year plan will incorporate the Women’s Health Strategy for England, published on 20 July 2022. \p Karin Smyth: We are committed to the Women's Health Strategy, which will be taken forward as part of the 10-Year Health Plan.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_27
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_27

Dr Simon Opher:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the number of entry level nursing roles. \p Karin Smyth: Decisions about recruitment, including for entry level nursing roles, are matters for individual National Health Service trusts. NHS trusts manage their recruitment at a local level, ensuring they have the right number of staff in place, with the right skill mix, to deliver safe and effective care.

We have launched a 10-Year Health Plan to reform the NHS and will refresh the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan next summer to ensure the NHS has the right people, in the right places, with the right skills to deliver the care patients need when they need it, and working with partners, we are committed to recruiting the staff we need to get patients seen on time.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_28
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_28

Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what purposes the NHS Business Services Authority has used artificial intelligence in the last 12 months. \p Karin Smyth: Artificial intelligence (AI) is at the heart of the Government’s plan to kickstart an era of economic growth, transform how we deliver public services, and boost living standards for working people across the country.

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) has identified opportunities for the utilisation of AI tools and services and has categorised those into three areas of opportunity: personal efficiency and productivity; applying Generative AI (GenAI) at a professional level; and GenAI at an organisational or service level.

The NHSBSA has therefore used AI in a number of proof of concept pieces over the past 12 months to test its fit for purposefulness in these environments. These include drafting meeting minutes, customer insights and data extraction, job specifications, supporting coding, and chatbot development.

The NHSBSA is in enabling discussions with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology to work in step with other departmental Arm’s Length Bodies in GenAI development in health and social care, and can draw on a range of resources, published on the GOV.UK website, to inform AI usage.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_29
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_29

Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the (a) 10 Year Health Plan and (b) Long-Term Workforce Plan will link to the AI Opportunities Plan. \p Karin Smyth: As part of the 10-Year Health Plan we are reviewing how the National Health Service should focus its resources to ensure that it maximises the impact of data and technology. This includes how we can make life easier and more productive for those who work in the NHS, and how we can use data more effectively to plan, manage and deliver services. This will also be reflected in the refreshed Long-Term Workforce Plan.

Artificial intelligence (AI) will play an important role in achieving this long-term ambition, allowing clinicians to focus more on direct patient care and allowing staff to spend more time on high value, high impact tasks. The AI Opportunities Action Plan sets out a desire to shape the AI revolution on principles of shared economic prosperity, improved public services, and increased personal opportunities.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_30
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_30

Bradley Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of AI on (a) hospital waiting times and (b) the number of missed appointments. \p Karin Smyth: Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies have huge potential in improving productivity across the National Health Service by supporting clinicians with faster and more accurate diagnosis, enhancing clinical decision-making about treatment plans, and reducing the administrative burden faced by healthcare staff. The Department and NHS England are developing guidance for the responsible use of these tools and how they can be rolled out to make the day-to-day operations of the NHS more productive.

Patients have been let down for too long whilst they wait for the care they need. Currently, the waiting list stands at 7.48 million, with only 59% waiting less than 18 weeks for treatment. The Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, sets out the productivity and reform efforts needed to return to the constitutional standard that 92% of patients wait no longer than 18 weeks from Referral to Treatment. The plan includes exploring opportunities for digital innovation and looking at where these can be adopted more widely to improve patient experience and care. For example, some trusts are using AI as part of their process for waiting list validation in addition to clinical validation, which helps to ensure waiting lists are accurate and up to date as well as enabling more efficient use of clinical time.

Other areas of digital innovation across the NHS include the use of AI prediction that helps prevent missed appointments and maximise clinic utilisation by supporting teams to fill appointments that patients can no longer use. The Elective Reform Plan commits to enhance two-way communication between hospitals and patients and use the results of AI work to predict who will miss appointments to target communications and prevent up to one million missed appointments.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_31
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_31

Joe Morris:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to shift care from hospitals into the community in (a) Hexham, (b) Northumberland, (c) Newcastle, (d) the North East and (e) rural areas. \p Karin Smyth: As part of our mission to build a National Health Service fit for the future, we launched a 10-Year Health Plan. The plan will set out an agenda to deliver on the three big shifts needed, to move healthcare from hospital to the community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention.

We are committed to moving towards a Neighbourhood Health Service, with more care delivered locally to create healthier communities, spot problems earlier, and support people to stay healthier and maintain their independence for longer.

Integrated care boards (ICB) are responsible for planning health services for their local area and are best placed to make decisions on care services in the community according to local need.

Neighbourhood Health Guidelines have been published alongside the 2025/26 NHS Operational Planning Guidance and 2025/26 Better Care Fund policy framework, published 30 January 2025, to help ICBs, local authorities, and health and care providers to continue to progress neighbourhood health in 2025/26, in advance of the publication of the 10-Year Health Plan.

We will provide further details of a National Implementation Programme in the coming months, designed for all parts of the health and social care system involved in delivering neighbourhood health. This programme will adopt a test and learn approach, to help identify what is working most effectively and the conditions required to deliver a set of target outcomes.

Community health services are an essential building block in developing a neighbourhood health service, working closely with primary care, social care, and other community services to provide more care in the community.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_32
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_32

Manuela Perteghella:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of measures in place to prevent violence against NHS staff. \p Karin Smyth: Individual employers are responsible for the health and safety of their staff, and they put in place many measures to ensure their health and safety, including appropriate security, training, and emotional support for staff affected by violence.

To support them, NHS England is working on initiatives to prevent and reduce violence and aggression from patients, their families, and the public. In December 2024, NHS England updated its violence prevention standard. This sets out guidance for employers to help them identify risks and develop local policies for dealing with violence and supporting staff.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_33
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_33

Bradley Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to increase the provision of radiographers in the NHS. \p Karin Smyth: The refreshed Long Term Workforce Plan, which will be published this summer, will deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, and will ensure that the National Health Service has the right people, including radiographers, in the right places, with the right skills to deliver the care patients need when they need it.

To supplement the student loan support provided by the Department for Education, the Department of Health and Social Care provides non-repayable and non-income assessed funding via the NHS Learning Support Fund. All eligible nursing, midwifery and allied health professions students, including those studying radiography, receive a grant of £5,000 per academic year. Radiography students receive an additional specialist subject payment of £1,000 per year, with a further £2,000 per year available for childcare, as well as support for placement travel and accommodation costs. Students in exceptional hardship can also access up to a further £3,000 per year.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_34
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_34

Mrs Sharon Hodgson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on (a) how much each mesh centre received in specialised commissioning funding and (b) how many removals took place in each month since this service began. \p Karin Smyth: The Department does not hold information on how much each mesh centre received in specialised commissioning funding and on the number of removals that have taken place each month since the service began.

There are nine specialist mesh centres across England, ensuring that women in every region with complications of mesh inserted for urinary incontinence and vaginal prolapse get the right support. Each mesh centre is led by a multi-disciplinary team to ensure patients get access to the specialist care and treatment that they need, including pain management and psychological support.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_35
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_35

Chris Bloore:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to extend independent prescribing responsibilities to Occupational Therapists under the Medicines and Medical Devices Act (2021) where it is safe to do so. \p Karin Smyth: Appropriately trained occupational therapists can already supply/administer medicines under a Patient Specific Direction (PSD) or a Patient Group Direction (PGD). A PSD is a written instruction from a prescriber for medicines to be supplied or administered to a specific patient or person. PGDs are a set of instructions which allow healthcare professionals to supply and administer specific medicines to pre-defined groups of patients without the need for them to be referred to a prescriber.

There is a process in place for making changes to prescribing responsibilities to ensure those changes are safe and beneficial for patients.

In late 2020, NHS England launched a series of public consultations seeking views on proposals to amend responsibilities for the prescribing, supply and/or administration of medicines for specific healthcare professionals.

The Department is working with NHS England to consider these consultations and other requests to progress the extension of responsibilities to supply, administer or prescribe medicines under the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 to regulated healthcare professionals, where a clear need and benefits have been identified.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_36
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_36

Mrs Sharon Hodgson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate he has made of the average waiting times for mesh centres; and what steps he is taking to reduce this. \p Karin Smyth: There are nine specialist mesh centres across England, ensuring that women in every region with complications of mesh inserted for urinary incontinence and vaginal prolapse get the right support. Each mesh centre is led by a multi-disciplinary team to ensure patients get access to the specialist care and treatment that they need, including pain management and psychological support. NHS England publishes data on referral to treatment waiting times. This is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/rtt-waiting-times/

The Department does not hold information on the average waiting times specifically for mesh centres. Tackling waiting lists is a key part of our Health Mission and we are taking steps to return to the 18-week standard. The Elective Reform Plan sets out how the National Health Service will reform elective care services and meet the 18-week referral to treatment standard by March 2029.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_37
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_37

Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will establish a standard process for the implementation of AI applications in the NHS. \p Karin Smyth: The implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) in the National Health Service is still at a relatively early stage. To address this, the Department is carrying out work to assess the barriers of effective adoption and improve the way AI tools are implemented across the NHS.

The Department is supporting the NHS to adopt the latest innovations in digital technology, such as AI. £2 billion has been allocated to digitise the NHS and £113 million has been provided to accelerate the evaluation and deployment of the most promising AI technologies.

Additionally, the Department has supported the launch of regulatory projects to begin to create a standardized process for AI implementation, such as with the AI and Digital Regulation Service (AIDRS) and the AI Airlock.

The AIDRS, in partnership with healthcare regulators, gives innovators and health and care providers a one-stop-shop for support, information, and guidance on the regulatory and evaluation pathways that need to be followed before an AI tool can be safely implemented across the NHS. The AI Airlock is a Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency-led initiative, supported by the NHS AI Lab, designed to create a controlled testing environment where developers can rigorously validate AI tools in real-world clinical settings before full-scale deployment, ensuring they meet NHS standards for safety, efficacy, and integration into existing healthcare workflows.

Following the announcement of the Government’s AI Opportunities Action Plan, the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England have been working with Prime Minister's Office to develop specific proposals of how they will promote the implementation of AI. This includes using a Scan, Pilot, Scale model approach to investing and supporting AI development, to ensure that useful AI tools are quickly identified, tested and, where successful, implemented to improve the lives of United Kingdom citizens.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_38
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_38

Jessica Toale:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of maternity services in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole. \p Karin Smyth: The maternity services at University Hospitals Dorset (UHD) have made many improvements since the most recent Care Quality Commission inspection in 2022. Maternity is moving from St Mary’s in Poole to the Beach building at Royal Bournemouth Hospital in April. This is part of the £500 million investment across UHD’s hospitals to help improve healthcare for the residents of Bournemouth, Christchurch, Poole, and beyond.

Since September 2024, the service has become Maternity and Neonatal, working as one department to ensure families in Dorset have the most joined up care. UHD has recruited all obstetric and neonatal consultant posts and continues to have excellent retention rates for midwives and neonatal nurses. UHD have also introduced more senior midwifery posts in the last two years, to ensure more senior support on the labour ward and within its audit and practice development team.

Nationally, we continue to work with the National Health Service as it delivers its three-year maternity and neonatal plan to grow our maternity workforce, develop a culture of safety, and ensure women receive safe, compassionate care. We are also looking at how we better support trusts failing on maternity care to make rapid improvements, and we are already training thousands more midwives to better support women throughout their pregnancy and beyond.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_39
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_39

Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to monitor quality control of new AI products used in the NHS to ensure (a) value for money and (b) return on investment. \p Karin Smyth: Against a backdrop of increasing demand for National Health Services and significant workforce pressures, artificial intelligence (AI) presents significant opportunities for improving the delivery of care and outcomes for patients, while also saving money and staff time.

Continuous monitoring after deployment is essential to ensure rigorous quality control of new AI products, value for money, and return on investment. The Department is working closely with regulators to identify new measures for providing assurance.

The Department has launched regulatory projects, such as the AI Airlock, to support this aim. AI Airlock is a Medicines and Healthcare products Regulation Agency-led initiative designed to create a controlled testing environment where developers can rigorously validate AI tools in real-world clinical settings before full-scale deployment, ensuring they meet NHS standards for safety, efficacy, value for money, and integration into existing healthcare workflows. This initiative provides valuable feedback for developers to refine their products to ensure a return on investment, when eventually deployed into the NHS.

In addition, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), sponsored by the Department, evaluates new health technologies for NHS use, considering clinical effectiveness and value for money. As part of this, the NICE conducts Early Value Assessments (EVA) for developers, reviewing their AI tools, including their value for money and return on investment, before they are deployed. For the NHS, EVAs aim to give the NHS a clear signal about which innovations work, offer good value for money, and meet system need.

In the United Kingdom, the vast majority of AI products being used in health and care are regulated as medical technologies. This means they are subject to stringent requirements, primarily set out in The Medical Devices Regulations 2002, and robust monitoring by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulation Agency.

The responsibility for spending decisions rests with individual NHS trusts. As public bodies, NHS trusts should maintain the highest standards of rigour, value for money, and propriety in the use of public funding. All spending must contribute to organisational objectives and support the delivery of high-quality patient care.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_40
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_40

Blake Stephenson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential causes of the increase in the number of over-65s being hospitalised in November and December (a) 2023 and (b) 2024. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England publishes information on admissions by age group, including for those aged 65 years old and over. The proportion of admissions has remained relatively stable between the years at approximately 4%. There is a long-term growth trend overall in the number of hospital admissions. The following table shows the number of admitted hospital attendances for people aged 65 years old and over, and the proportion of total admitted attendances for people aged 65 years old and over, in England, in November and December 2023 and in November and December 2024:

Month

Admitted hospital attendances for people aged 65 years old and over, England

Proportion of total admitted attendances for people aged 65 years old and over, England

November 2023

141,500

45%

December 2023

154,665

47%

November 2024

160,630

43%

December 2024

154,995

45%

Source: NHS England, available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ae-waiting-times-and-activity/ae-attendances-and-emergency-admissions-2024-25/

Notes:
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_41
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_41

Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an estimate of recent trends in the number of people prescribed pain medication in the last 12 months. \p Karin Smyth: The Prescription Cost Analysis data release gives items and quantities of each medicine dispensed in the community in England. The following table shows the total number of items dispensed for analgesics in England, regardless of where prescribed, as well as the unique number of patients that were dispensed medicines listed in British National Formulary (BNF) Section 4.7 Analgesics, from December 2023 to November 2024:

Month and year

Total number of items

Unique identified patients

December 2023

5,000,000

3,100,000

January 2024

5,200,000

3,200,000

February 2024

4,800,000

3,100,000

March 2024

4,900,000

3,100,000

April 2024

5,100,000

3,200,000

May 2024

5,200,000

3,200,000

June 2024

4,800,000

3,100,000

July 2024

5,200,000

3,200,000

August 2024

5,000,000

3,100,000

September 2024

4,900,000

3,100,000

October 2024

5,200,000

3,200,000

November 2024

5,000,000

3,200,000

Total

60,400,000

7,500,000

For further information, BNF 4.7 includes:

- non-opioid analgesics and compound preparations;

- opioid analgesics;

- neuropathic pain medicines; and

- antimigraine medicines.

No data has been captured relating to the clinical indication a prescription is intended for. Some of these products can be used for a variety of clinical indications and therefore the figures provided may include items that were prescribed for a different condition, rather than for pain relief.

It is important to note that this data does not capture medicines classified elsewhere within the BNF, which are primarily used for other reasons, but may also be used for analgesic purposes. This includes, for example, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which feature in 10.1 ‘Drugs used in rheumatic diseases and gout’, and antidepressants, used off-label in chronic primary pain, which feature in 4.3 ‘Antidepressant drugs’.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_42
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_42

Alex Ballinger:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a mandatory and formal way for recording if and when patients have had an assessment for section 117 aftercare. \p Stephen Kinnock: Section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983 requires local social services authorities and National Health Service commissioners to provide or arrange for the provision of aftercare to adults or children detained in hospital for treatment under section 3, 37, 45A, or transferred under section 47 or 48 of the Act who then leave hospital. No assessment of patients is required to determine whether they are eligible for s117 aftercare although professionals would of course be expected to work with a patient to understand their individual needs.

There are no plans at present to introduce any such mandatory training or require mandatory recording of the number of people eligible for section 117 who local social services authorities and NHS commissioners have responsibility for.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_43
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_43

James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to assist Basildon Hospital in improving their maternity services. \p Karin Smyth: The Basildon Hospital entered the NHS England Maternity Safety Support Programme (MSSP) in October 2020 due to safety concerns identified in a Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection which rated it ‘Inadequate’. Its latest CQC report in March 2024 rated the maternity services as ‘Requiring Improvement’ for safety, effectiveness, and leadership, and responsiveness was rated as ‘Good’.

To assist Basildon Hospital to improve their maternity services, the MSSP has increased support by adding a second Maternity Improvement Advisor to oversee all three maternity sites at the trust. Key improvements include midwifery vacancies being at their lowest in three years at less than 1%, ensuring staff complete training and regular audits being conducted to monitor service quality. The latest CQC report also acknowledged progress, particularly in patient involvement and efforts to reduce care disparities.

The integrated care board will continue to support the trust to enhance safety, care quality, and patient experience. The Regional Maternity Team and Local Maternity and Neonatal System continue to work closely with Basildon Maternity Unit on its journey of improvement.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_44
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_44

Mrs Sharon Hodgson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many removals of surgical mesh have taken place at the University College London Hospital in each month since this service began. \p Karin Smyth: There are nine specialist mesh centres across England, ensuring that women in every region with complications of mesh inserted for urinary incontinence and vaginal prolapse gets the right support. Each mesh centre is led by a multi-disciplinary team to ensure patients get access to the specialist care and treatment that they need, including pain management and psychological support.

According to information held by NHS England, since going live in July 2021, there have been 281 surgical mesh removal operations at the University College London Hospital. Monthly data is not available due to very low patient numbers per month.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_45
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_45

Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NHS England's guidance entitled 2025/26 priorities and operational planning guidance, published on 30 January 2025, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the removal of the dementia diagnosis target rate on local health service accountability. \p Stephen Kinnock: We remain committed to increasing dementia diagnosis rates and agree that early diagnosis is vital to ensure people with dementia can access the treatment and support they need.

We have taken a new approach to NHS Planning Guidance this year, reducing the number of national directives from 32 to 18. We will only turn the National Health Service around by doing things differently. These are the first steps on our journey for long-term reform of the NHS.

NHS Planning Guidance is not an exhaustive list of everything the NHS does, and the absence of a target does not mean it is not an area of focus. The Darzi Investigation found that there are too many targets set for the NHS, which made it hard for local systems to prioritise their actions or to be held properly accountable.

Our aim is to give more power to local systems and let them decide how they use local funding to best meet the needs of their local population. This approach signals our ambition for reform, recognises the role of the NHS in driving economic growth, and enshrines our commitment to financial rigour in the system.

Through our extensive public engagement as part of the 10-Year Health Plan, we will continue to listen to patients’ priorities and keep focused on what matters most to the public.

Lord Darzi’s independent review showed that a timely diagnosis is vital to ensuring that a person with dementia can access the advice, information, care, and support that can help them to live well and remain independent for as long as possible.

The 10-Year Health Plan will address the challenges diagnosed by Lord Darzi and set the vision for what good joined-up care looks like for people with a combination of complex health and care needs. It will set out how we support and enable health and social care services to work together better to provide that joined-up care.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_46
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_46

Liam Conlon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help NHS Trusts improve neo-natal care. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England is implementing recommendations from the Neonatal Critical Care Review (2019) by investing £45 million in increasing neonatal cot capacity and assigning care coordinators for all Neonatal Operational Delivery Networks to implement care programmes, improving parent and family experiences.

The Government continues to work with NHS England as it delivers its 3-year maternity and neonatal plan to grow its workforce, develop a culture of safety, and ensure women receive safe, compassionate care. NHS England has made good progress already, with 548 full-time equivalent (FTE) cot-side nurses having been recruited to expand the neonatal workforce, as well as the consultant obstetrician workforce increasing to 1,968 FTE. NHS England has funded a lead midwife focusing on retention for every trust, with the retention programme continuing in 2024/25.

Additionally, neonatal nurses can undertake a Qualification in Specialty (QIS) training for neonatal care. This enables them to provide a higher level of care to critically ill or premature babies and offer crucial support to other nurses in the daily care of these babies.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_47
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_47

Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will review the regulatory framework for prescribing cannabis-based medicinal products to allow GPs to prescribe those treatments. \p Karin Smyth: General practitioners (GPs) can only prescribe unlicensed cannabis-based products for medicinal use if under the direction of a specialist.

These medicines are not first-line treatments and patients will be at a stage in their treatment pathway where they will be under the care of a specialist doctor. Whilst the evidence-base remains limited on the safety, quality, and efficacy of these products, it is right that the decision to prescribe remains essentially with specialist doctors. As with all laws, we will keep its impact under review.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_48
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_48

Alex Ballinger:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to address the shortages in Pancreatic enzyme replacement medication. \p Karin Smyth: The Department is continuing to engage with all suppliers of pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT) to boost production to mitigate the supply issue. Increased volumes of PERT are expected for 2025, and specialist importers have sourced unlicensed stock to assist in covering the gap in the market. In December 2024, the Department issued further management advice to healthcare professionals. This includes actions for clinicians to consider unlicensed imports when licensed stock is unavailable and for integrated care boards to ensure local mitigation plans are put in place and implemented. The Department, in collaboration with NHS England, has created a public facing page to include the latest update on PERT availability and easily accessible prescribing advice.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_49
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_49

Mr Mark Francois:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much and what proportion of the capital expenditure promised to Basildon, Broomfield and Southend hospitals as part of their merger into Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust has been (a) allocated, (b) paid and (c) spent by that Trust. \p Karin Smyth: The trust was awarded £118.6 million as part of the National Health Service upgrades programme for the reconfiguration of hospital services across three acute sites, namely Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford, Southend Hospital in Southend, and Basildon Hospital in Basildon. Between 2019/20 and 2024/25, the trust has accessed funding totalling £16.3 million that has been spent so far. More funding may be provided for completed work before the end of the financial year.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_50
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_50

Joe Morris:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of people on NHS waiting lists in (a) Hexham constituency, (b) Northumberland, (c) Newcastle and (d) the North East. \p Karin Smyth: Tackling waiting lists is a key part of our Health Mission and a top priority for the Government. On 6 January 2025, NHS England published the new Elective Reform Plan, part of the Government’s Plan for Change to ensure that patients are seen on time and have the best possible experience during their care, including those using National Health Services in the Hexham constituency, Northumberland, Newcastle and the North East. Further information on the Elective Reform Plan is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/reforming-elective-care-for-patients.pdf

We have set an ambition to make progress on the 18-week standard in 2025/26, to 65% of patients waiting no longer than 18 weeks from Referral to Treatment nationally. At the end of November 2024, the rate at the Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust was 80.3%, and the rate at the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals was 68.4%. This compares to 59.1% nationally. These two trusts are performing better than the average, which is very much welcomed, but we are pressing to ensure we build on that, and have set out our expectation that all English trusts will deliver a minimum 5% improvement by March 2026.

To support this ambition, my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced £1.5 billion of capital funding, including for new surgical hubs and diagnostic scanners, at the Autumn Statement. This will build capacity for over 30,000 additional procedures and over 1.25 million diagnostic tests as they come online, as well as new beds which will create more treatment space and reduce waiting times.

The Elective Reform Plan sets out a number of ways which we will increase productivity and improve patient experience, including increasing the number of surgical hubs, and expanding and increasing the opening times of Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs). Three hubs are currently operational in the North-East and North Cumbria Integrated Care System, which serves patients across Hexham, Northumberland, Newcastle and the North-East, with one due to open at the South Tees Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, namely the Friarage Hospital Elective Hub.

There are currently five CDCs located across the North East of England, including the Metrocentre CDC in Gateshead.
wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_51
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-02-13)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-02-13 conversation_51

Charlotte Nichols:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to increase capacity in appointments for NHS dental treatment for pregnant and postpartum women who are entitled to free NHS dental care. \p Stephen Kinnock: We are aware of the challenges faced in accessing a dentist, and we want to make sure that everyone who needs a National Health Service dentist can get one, including pregnant women and new mothers. The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access NHS dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most.

The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Warrington North constituency, this is the NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB.