§ Mr. Robin CookTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how the activity of a National Health Service trust hospital will be monitored to ensure that(a) it provides the appropriate staff and facilities for teaching medical students where appropriate, (b) it meets its commitments for such teaching and (c) it continues to treat the appropriate range of diseases required for undergraduate medical teaching.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyNational Health Service trusts will be directly accountable to my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State. They will need to satisfy him not only that they have undertaken to provide adequate facilities for teaching medical students, but that these undertakings have been met. In addition, as agents for the distribution of the service increment for teaching, regional health authorities will consult universities and agree with NHS trusts what facilities should be provided for teaching medical students. They will monitor the performance of trusts against these agreements, taking into account the views of universities.
§ Mr. Robin CookTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the names of any firms of outside consultants and the terms of their contracts employed by his Department in connection with the National Health Service reforms.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyThe information requested is as follows:
- National Economic Research Associates
- To report on contracting arrangements for patient services.
- Coopers and Lybrand Deloitte
- To assist in work on costing for patient services contracts.
- Coopers and Lybrand Deloitte
- To assist in work on costing for patient services contracts within Wirral Health Authority
- Resource Management Services
- To analyse the informal cost sharing arrangements between Medical Schools and Teaching Hospitals in
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- To help in the production of a booklet on the outpatient environment.
- Price Waterhouse
- To develop training material for Capital Charges.
- BBL and D
- To assist in production of GP's Funding Programme.
- BBL and D
- To prepare publicity leaflet on prescribing budgets for GPs.
- BBL and D
- To prepare artwork/layout of a second Working Paper on prescribing budgets.
- BBL and D
- To assist in work on Indicative Prescribing Budgets
- Coopers and Lybrand Deloitte
- To investigate District Information Systems.
- Health Information Management Services
- To co-ordinate the Departments Information project.
- DBI Associates Ltd.
- To recommend new arrangements for approval and monitoring of strategic IT projects.
- Andersen Consulting
- To investigate the IT requirements for providers of patient services.
- Peat Marwick McClintock
- To investigate the IT implications of proposed changes to Minimum Data Sets.
- Peat Marwick McClintock
- To investigate the requirements for patient identification on existing computer systems.
- Andersen Consulting
- To investigate the impact of the White Paper recommendations on existing computer based outpatient systems.
- Pareto Consulting
- To assist with the development of an IT strategy for the National Health Service.
- Price Waterhouse
- To develop NHS Trusts. Financial Management simulation exercise.
- Coopers and Lybrand Deloitte
- NHS Trusts leadership and management skills study.
- Andersen Consulting
- To make recommendation on support for potential NHS Trusts.
- Kings Fund College; Office for Public Management; Nuffield Institute; Management Advisory Service
- To Develop Learning Sets for potential community care NHS Trusts.
- David Richards
- To prepare proposals for guidance and training for top Management in the NHS, to support introduction of local pay flexibility.
- Coopers and Lybrand
- To investigate the costing methods in the NHS Hospital Service and to determine the most appropriate for application in support of contract price setting.
The terms of these contracts were prepared on an individual basis in line with the specific requirements of the work undertaken, drawing as necessary on relevant expertise within the Department, and in line with the guidance issued by Treasury on employment of external consultants.
§ Mr. Robin CookTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the agenda, papers and list of participants for the meeting organised by his Department on the subject of the National Health Service trusts on 22 and 23 February.
§ Mr. Robin CookTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department will fund to study the impact of the Government's National Health Service reforms.
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§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyThe Health Service, supported by the Department of Health, is undertaking a wide range of projects designed to inform the implementation of the Government's proposals to improve services.