HC Deb 10 May 1999 vol 331 cc65-6W
Dr. Lynne Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if the Royal College of Physicians publication, "Osteoporosis: Clinical Guidelines for Prevention and Treatment", will be given official status in Ministers' advice to health authorities. [82890]

Ms Jowell

The Royal College of Physicians clinical guidelines for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis, and the desktop guide for general practitioners and primary care teams, offer advice on effectiveness to inform clinical decisions.

The Department highly recommends both documents as a basis for developing local osteoporosis strategies, and where strategies already exist would expect them to be consistent with this guidance.

The Department has brought the RCP document on osteoporosis, launched last June, to the attention of the National Health Service through Health Service Circular 1998/124, and through two articles in the Chief Medical Officer's Update.

Forward to