Tag: NHS

Bishop of London responds to government statement on crimes at Countess of Chester Hospital

On 5th September 2023, the Bishop of London spoke in response to a government statement on the inquiry into the Countess of Chester Hospital and the crimes of Lucy Letby, welcoming the inquiry and asking why existing policies on whistleblowing and safeguarding were not enough to prevent the crimes, and what could be done in future to mitigate this:

The Lord Bishop of London: My Lords, I also declare my interests as noted in the register, specifically as a previous Chief Nursing Officer for England and as a non-executive director of a number of NHS trusts for a number of years. I also extend my sympathy and prayers to those who have been impacted by these awful and unimaginable atrocities.

I join others in welcoming that this is now a statutory inquiry. I also support the points made by the noble Baroness, Lady Merron, particularly around NHS manager regulation. I ask the Minister whether, when the Government look at that regulation, they will consider that it should go beyond the NHS executive, who themselves are managers, so providing external scrutiny.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about safeguards against data breaches

On 4th September 2023, the Bishop of St Albans asked a question on the safety and security of NHS data systems during a discussion on recent reports from the Electoral Commission regarding a data breach:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, the stakes are very high when these data breaches take place, because they erode public confidence in allowing organisations to collect and use our private data. I am thinking in particular of the NHS, and its great reliance on data; if it can analyse and collect information, this could be of huge help in solving medical problems and curing diseases. To prevent these things in future, what is being done to ensure that the NHS computer system cannot be hacked and that people can have real confidence in it being allowed to collect their data?

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Bishop of St Albans asks about integration of care systems in rural areas

The Bishop of St Albans asked a question on integrated care systems in rural areas on 24th July 2023, during a discussion about best practice guidelines for care of strokes:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, these guidelines are very encouraging, and all who work on them should be congratulated. As we keep hearing, the essence is speed if we are to treat effectively, yet this is particularly difficult in rural areas, especially remote rural areas. What additional help is being given to integrated care boards’ care systems to ensure that our rural integrated care boards can deliver these guidelines, which are so vital?

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Bishop of London asks about upcoming workforce strategy for social care

The Bishop of London received the following written answer on 10th July 2023:

The Lord Bishop of London asked His Majesty’s Government whether the upcoming workforce strategy for social care will implement recommendations contained in the Delivery Plan for Recovering Access to Primary Care, published by the NHS Confederation on 9 May, including (1) support for pharmacists to implement the Pharmacy First initiative, and (2) additional locum cover for GPs as they transition into ‘modern General Practices’.

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Bishop of Exeter asks about resolution to doctors’ strikes

The Bishop of Exeter tabled a question on what progress the government had made towards resolving strikes by NHS doctors on 5th July 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Exeter: To ask His Majesty’s Government what progress they have made towards resolving the strikes by doctors in the NHS.

Lord Markham (Con): My Lords, the Government have been clear that we want to resolve the strikes by doctors. We negotiated in good faith with the BMA’s junior doctors committee in May. The Government stand ready to meet junior doctors again if they move from their unreasonable ask of a 35% pay rise this year. We also want to open negotiations with consultants. We encourage unions to come to the negotiating table rather than proceeding with strike action.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about average ambulance response times

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 5th July 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what was the average ambulance response time in (1) NHS Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Integrated Care Board, and (2) NHS Hertfordshire and West Essex Integrated Care Board, in (a) 2019, (b) 2020, (c) 2021, and (d) 2022.

Lord Markham (Con): Ambulance response times by Integrated Care Board (ICB) area are not centrally collected.

Hansard

Bishop of Exeter asks about investment in social care

The Bishop of Exeter asked a question on the need for investment in the social care workforce on 4th July 2023, following a government statement on the NHS workforce plan:

The Lord Bishop of Exeter: My Lords, we on these Benches very much welcome this workforce plan, in particular the expansion of places for training with a range of clinicians and the shift of gaze towards community care and prevention. Our anxiety very much mirrors that of the noble Baroness, Lady Merron, and the noble Lord, Lord Allan of Hallam. We notice that page 23 of the report says:

“This Plan is predicated on access to social care services remaining broadly in line with current levels or improving”.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about NHS Integrated Care Board funding applications

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 3rd July 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government how many S2 funding applications were approved in (1) NHS Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes Integrated Care Board, and (2) NHS Hertfordshire and West Essex Integrated Care Board, in (a) 2019, (b) 2020, (c) 2021, and (d) 2022.

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Bishop of London asks about patient care and health inequalities

The Bishop of London received the following written answers on 20th June 2023:

The Lord Bishop of London asked His Majesty’s Government, further to The Hewitt Review: an independent review of integrated care systems, published on 4 April, what plans they have to implement the recommendation contained in that review to publish a strategy for the social care workforce.

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‘MPs must oppose government plans that threaten nurses and others with dismissal’ – Bishop of London and RCN General Secretary article

The following article, jointly authored by the Bishop of London and Pat Cullen, appeared in The Times Red Box on Monday May 22 2023


Nursing has come a long way since we both entered the profession for the first time in the 1980s. But the values that underpin it have remained constant: compassion, selflessness, dignity, and integrity.

Nurses will stop at nothing to look after their patients. The nursing profession is the beating heart of this country’s health and care system.

Ministers stood on their doorsteps during the pandemic clapping the heroic efforts of nurses. Now that seems like a distant memory.

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