Cancer Care (Hansard, 20 January 1995)

§ Mr. Pawsey
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements cover the provision of palliative care to terminal cancer patients who are discharged to a nursing home.

§ Mr. Sackville
Where a patient with terminal cancer is discharged into a nursing home and is assessed as requiring specialist palliative care, it is the responsibility of the health authority to provide any such care over and above general nursing care. Specific arrangements should be agreed locally between health and local authorities.

§ Mr. Pawsey
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements govern the employment by general practitioner fundholders of Macmillan nurses to care for their patients.

§ Mr. Malone
Palliative care services such as those provided by Macmillan nurses are not included within the scope of the current general practitioner fundholding scheme. There are currently four total purchasing pilots—a further 30 are being established—where fundholders can purchase all hospital and community care including palliative care. These pilots will be evaluated as part of the national programme.

§ Mr. Pawsey
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many specialist breast cancer care units there are in the NHS.
765W

§ Mr. Malone
The number of consultants who specialise only in the treatment of breast cancer is not known.