§ Ms. EagleTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what powers she has to ensure that trusts and other providers of health care share information with the central health monitoring unit, regardless of commercial confidentiality; and what examples there have been of providers refusing to co-operate in statistical surveys initiated by the central health monitoring unit.
§ Dr. MawhinneyThe Secretary of State has particular powers under the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990 to require trusts to provide whatever information she requires to discharge her responsibilities. Information from the national health service is agreed through a joint Department of Health/national health service consultative committee and there is accountability through the management chain for474W the provision of that information from providers and purchasers of health care in the national health service. There have been no problems with the exchange of information.
§ Ms. EagleTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what kind of data the central health monitoring unit is collecting; and what use it is currently making of such information;
(2) what level of resources, including staffing, is being allocated to the central health monitoring unit;
(3) if she intends to publish regularly the data collected by the central health monitoring unit;
(4) if she will outline the role of the central health monitoring unit; and if she will make a statement detailing its current workload and its plans for future projects.
§ Dr. MawhinneyThe central health monitoring unit was set up in March 1989 to provide the Department with epidemiological data to underpin its strategic. managerial and policy work. The unit, which is headed by a medical epidemiologist, comprises 12 posts including epidemiological, statistical and administrative support.
A major function of the unit is to collate published statistics on health from a wide range of sources and to assess and present health trends in, for example, mortality, morbidity and risk factors. The health survey for England, a survey being taken forward by the unit, involves the collection of information from individual households and the results will be published annually.
The unit is currently engaged in producing a series of epidemiological overviews on various aspects of the health of the population; in developing a health survey programme; and, in contributing to the development and monitoring of the health strategy. The series of overviews is being published. The first, on the elderly, was published in September 1992. Other assessments of health trends by the unit are published in the chief medical officer's annual reports.