§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will give a breakdown of his estimated figure of £60 to £160 million as being the cost of implementing the second report of the Social Services Committee on perinatal mortality and handicap; and if he will make a statement.
§ Dr. VaughanI refer the hon. Member to my right hon. Friend's reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Norfolk, North (Mr. Howell) on 4 December 1980.
§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if he will monitor the steps taken by the 30 area health authorities with the highest perinatal mortality rate to improve their rate; what action he proposes to assist such authorities; and if he will make a statement;
(2) if he will publish the response of the 30 area health authorities regarding the reasons for their high perinatal death rate; if he will publish the course of action each area health authority proposes to take; and if he will make a statement;
(3) if he will publish in the Official Report or other publication an annual progress report on the actions taken and the developments which follow such action by the area health authorities with the highest perinatal mortality and handicap rates in England;
(4) in view of the importance for education and for medical and social purposes of the information contained in the reports of the 30 area health authority areas with the highest perinatal mortality rate, if he will publish the details of the reports; and if he will make a statement.
176W
§ Dr. VaughanA general summary of the reports from the 33 health authorities was published in October 1979 and I am not intending to publish further details of information which is now more than two years old. As Cmnd. 8084 made clear, we are not imposing from the centre instructions on how health authorities should use their resources and opportunities for improving maternity and neonatal services and, despite the importance we attach to proper monitoring, we are not deciding at this stage when and how authorities should report on progress.
§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if his Department accepts some of the responsibilities for implementing recommendation 18 of the Second Report of the Social Services Committee on perinatal mortality; what is his Department's estimate of the costs of meeting such a recommendation; if he will issue a six-monthly report on progress of this recommendation; and if he will make a statement;
(2) what steps his Department is taking to implement recommendation 2 of the Second Report of the Social Services Committee on perinatal mortality; if, in view of the importance of information and education in reducing perinatal mortality, he will immediately substantially increase his figure of £375,000; and if his Department will give a six-monthly report on improvements in information and publicity on this subject;
(3) if he will implement recommendation 12 of the Second Report of the Social Services Committee on perinatal mortality; what hospitals designated as regional and sub-regional perinatal centres are not fully provided with facilities for full intensive care of the mother and foetus before and during labour as well as for the baby after birth; if he will publish six-monthly reports of the equipping of such units; and if he will make a statement;
(4) what progress is being made to implement recommendation 15 of the Second Report of the Social Services Committee on perinatal mortality; what priority his Department gives to the continuous recording of the foetal heart rate of all babies during labour; if he will publish six-monthly progress reports on development in this field of obstetrics; and if he will make a statement;
(5) what progress is being made to implement recommendation 17 of the Second Report of the Social Services Committee on perinatal mortality; whether he accepts the three minimum recommendations given by the committee; if he is prepared to give a six-monthly progress report; and if he will make a statement;
(6) what positive steps his Department is taking to implement recommendation 1 of the Second Report of the Social Services Committee on perinatal mortality; if he will make a six-monthly report of progress by his Department; and if he will make a statement.
§ Dr. VaughanParagraphs 66, 67, 75, 78 and 79 of Cmnd. 8084 set out the Government's views on where responsibility rests for considering the recommendations specified by the hon. Member. The Department has now issued health circular (8)13 to health authorities and has approached professional and other bodies. Paragraphs 40–41 of Cmnd. 8084 explained that we are determined not to place excessive burdens on the NHS and that it was premature to decide how and when health authorities should make reports.
177WOn the cost of recommendation 18, I refer the hon. Member to my right hon. Friend's reply to my hon. Friend, the Member for Norfolk, North (Mr. Howell) on 4 December 1980.
The sums of £375,000 for 1980–81 and £325,000 for 1981–82 have been agreed between the Health Education Council and the Department as an appropriate level of expenditure on the "Mother and Baby" campaign, having regard to the total sums available for funding the council's programmes.
The designated centres to which the hon. Member refers are combined special and intensive care baby units: before and during labour the "at risk" mother and foetus will normally be cared for in the consultant obstetric unit.
§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what he considers the reasons are why the United Kingdom's perinatal mortality and handicap rate is not as good as other Western countries; and if he will make a statement.
§ Dr. VaughanParagraphs 17–19 of Cmnd. 8084 pointed out that, among other reasons, major congenital malformations—particularly of the nervous system—occur much more frequently in this country. Paragraph 52 referred to economic and social factors.