§ Mr. Paul MarsdenTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many community health workers worked in Shropshire(a) in May 1997 and (b) on the most recent date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [156565]
§ Yvette CooperData relating solely to community health workers are not collected centrally. The table illustrates the number of staff employed in hospitals and community health services (HCHS) in the Shropshire health authority (HA).
The National Health Service Plan sets out future plans for further expansion of NHS staff.
As part of this the Prime Minister announced on 19 March an additional £100 million to invest in general practice and primary care. PCTs and primary care groups will need to agree objectives and targets with their constituent practices for the effective use of these funds that support improvement of services by skilled and competent primary care professionals.