HC Deb 28 July 1997 vol 299 cc82-8W
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has evaluated into links between long-term addictive tendencies and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; and if he will make a statement. [10541]

Mr. Boateng

Research suggests that children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder have an increased risk of developing further problems later in childhood and in adolescence, including substance abuse in some. The nature of any such linkage is, however, not yet clear.

1993–94 1994–95 1995–96
Total expenditure 23,016.8 million 23,354.3 million 23,804.6 million
Expenditure on people with mental illness 2,508.0 million 2,472.3 million 2,511.4 million
Percentage of total expenditure 10.9 per cent. 10.6 per cent. 10.65 per cent.

Source:

Health Select Committee and RO3 return.

Note:

All figures are adjusted to 1995–96 prices using hospital and community health services expenditure.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of(a) the connection between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and behaviour problems and aggression among school pupils, (b) the number and percentage of pupils affected by attention deficit disorder and (c) the degree to which attention deficit hyperactivity disorder may be inherited; and if he will make a statement. [10581]

Mr. Boateng

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is one of several possible causes of behaviour problems, including aggression, in school pupils.

This information is not collected centrally. Recent research suggests that severe hyperkinetic disorder, which is one form of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is found in about one in 200 children.

It is accepted that there is an inherited contribution to the development of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder but the mode of inheritance is complex.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the amount of grant aid given by his Department to(a) the hyperactive children's support group and (b) other voluntary organisations concerned with the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder for each of the last five years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [10500]

Mr. Boateng

Departmental grant aid to the hyperactive children's support group for 1997–98 and the previous four years is as follows:

  • 1997–98: £5,000
  • 1996–97: £6,000
  • 1995–96: £7,000
  • 1994–95: £7,000
  • 1993–94: £7,000

The Department grant-aids a number of other voluntary organisations that give information and support over a range of child and adolescent mental health disorders and do not focus exclusively on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list for each of the last three years(a) the total amount estimated to have been spent on mental health treatment and (b) the total amount estimated to have been spent on treating children diagnosed as suffering from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, indicating in each case the percentage of each item as a proportion of the total health budget; and if he will make a statement. [10545]

Mr. Boateng

Total amounts estimated to have been spent on mental health treatment for the last three years are shown in the table. The information requested on treatment of children diagnosed as suffering from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is not collected centrally.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to improve the detection rate of children suffering from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder by child psychiatrists and paediatricians; and if he will make a statement. [10504]

Mr. Boateng

Matters concerning clinical performance and effectiveness are for the bodies, including the royal colleges, responsible for professional training, accreditation and development programmes and for clinical audit at local level. The Department has funded and supported a number of initiatives aimed at highlighting the importance of identifying and treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what recent evidence he has evaluated in respect of the number of times children in care are moved; if he will make it his policy to require all social service departments to incorporate a full assessment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder by a specially qualified medical practitioner into the social services' own assessment as to whether a child should enter care; and if he will make a statement; [10508]

(2) if he will make it his policy to ensure that every child moved from one foster home to another more than three times should be assessed for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; and if he will make a statement. [10507]

Mr. Boateng

No information is currently available centrally from routinely collected data about the number of times children in care are moved.

The criteria for taking children into care are set out in sections 20 and 31 of the Children Act 1989. Before each placement, local authorities are required to undertake a full assessment of a child's needs, including health needs, and match them to an appropriate placement. The assessment should, where appropriate, be made in collaboration with other agencies.

Children are moved from placement to placement for a wide variety of reasons. It is for local authorities to monitor the number of times a child is moved because of placement breakdown. The Department of Health "Looking After Children: Good Parenting, Good Outcomes" system of planning, assessment and review is designed to improve the care of looked after children and to help all those involved in a child's care to ensure more effective outcomes for the child, including health and education.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department gives to adoptive parents who discover that their adopted child is affected by attention deficit disorder or similar conditions; and if he will make a statement. [10510]

Mr. Boateng

Adopted children and their parents have access to the same level of medical care and attention as any other children.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will issue guidelines to assist head teachers and social workers in providing for the medical problems of hyperactive children; and if he will make a statement [10539]

Mr. Boateng

The Young Minds publication "Mental Health in Your School—A Guide for Teachers and Others Working In Schools" was funded by the Department of Health and published in 1996. It includes a section on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The looking after children assessment and action records, which are completed by social workers who are participating in the looking after children study, includes questions that focus on children's concentration and behaviour. Subsequent questions address the services that have been or are being sought to meet the needs of the child.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received in respect of his Department's advice to child psychiatrists on the treatment of hyperactivity; what plans he has to review the advice; and if he will make a statement. [10543]

Mr. Boateng

None. It is for the relevant professional and academic bodies to review and evaluate evidence for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and to disseminate such information through training and through publications in professional journals and texts.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will assess the advantages of promoting a national awareness week focusing on attention deficit disorder and similar conditions; and if he will make a statement. [10547]

Mr. Boateng

We are advised that it is unlikely that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder would benefit from presentation in this way.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on his Department's latest assessment of the prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; and what plans he has to allow treatment of the disorder within the national health service. [10494]

Mr. Boateng

Information on the current prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is not collected centrally. A recent review of research suggests that severe hyperkinetic disorder, which is one form of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is found in about one in 200 children. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is one of many child mental health disorders that is available for treatment in the national health service.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will ensure that health professionals are informed of the methods of recognising and treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder employed in the United States of America; and if he will make a statement. [10542]

Mr. Boateng

It is the responsibility of professional and academic bodies to assess the evidence for the best approaches in the recognition and treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. This evidence is available in literature from around the world, including the United States, and is widely available in professional journals within this country.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the appropriateness of conventional family therapy in the case of families where one or more child is affected by attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. [10546]

Mr. Boateng

Family therapy may play a part in a comprehensive treatment programme which may also include medication and other interventions. With young children and in milder forms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, family therapy may be an appropriate and effective approach on its own, for example if focused on enhancing parenting skills and helping the child learn strategies to improve concentration.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has in association with the Department for Education and Employment to promote(a) awareness of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and (b) appropriate training for the disorder among child psychiatrists and paediatricians. [10501]

Mr. Boateng

The handbook on "Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services", which was published jointly with the Department for Education and Employment, raises awareness of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and includes references to training of professional groups involved in the treatment of young people with emotional and behavioural disorders. Copies of the handbook are available in the Library.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has(a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into the relationship between attention deficit disorder and learning difficulties; and if he will make a statement. [10509]

Mr. Boateng

It has been shown that children with learning difficulties have an increased risk of a wide range of conditions, including hyperactivity. Attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder in children may also impair the capacity of a child to learn.

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list those university teaching hospitals, medical colleges and other institutions involved in the training of medical doctors, indicating which of them include in their courses training in attention deficit disorder. [10511]

Mr. Boateng

A list of United Kingdom university teaching hospitals, UK medical schools and medical royal colleges and their faculties is attached. The detailed content of curricula is set by individual medical schools within the parameters laid down by the General Medical Council which has responsibility for determining the extent of knowledge and skill required for the granting of UK primary medical qualifications. The standard and content of postgraduate medical training is the responsibility of the appropriate royal college or faculty, which will be fully aware of the importance of attention deficit disorder in training programmes.

Specialist training of child psychiatrists includes training in the diagnosis and treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The training rotations are regularly inspected and accredited by the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

United Kingdom university medical schools

  • University of Birmingham Faculty of Medicine
  • University of Bristol Medical School
  • University of Cambridge Faculty of Clinical Medicine
  • University of Leeds School of Medicine
  • University of Leicester Faculty of Medicine
  • University of Liverpool School of Medicine
  • University of London Medical Colleges:
    • Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School
    • King's College School of Medicine
    • St. Bartholomew's and the London School of Medicine
    • Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine
    • St. George's Hospital Medical School
    • St. Mary's Hospital Medical School
    • United Medical and Dental Schools of Guy's and St. Thomas's Hospitals
    • University College London Medical School
  • University of Manchester Medical School
  • University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne Faculty of Medicine
  • University of Nottingham Medical School
  • University of Oxford Medical School
  • University of Sheffield Medical School
  • University of Southampton Faculty of Medicine
  • University of Wales College of Medicine
  • University of Aberdeen Faculty of Medicine
  • University of Dundee Faculty of Medicine
  • University of Edinburgh Medical School
  • University of Glasgow Faculty of Medicine
  • Queen's University of Belfast Faculty of Medicine

United Kingdom university teaching hospitals

  • Queen's Medical centre, Nottingham University Hospital NHS trust
  • Royal Victoria Infirmary and Associated Hospitals NHS trust
  • St. James's University Hospital NHS trust
  • Leicester Royal Infirmary NHS trust
  • Central Sheffield University Hospital NHS trust
  • The Addenbrooke's NHS trust Southampton
  • University Hospital NHS trust
  • Oxford Radcliffe Hospital NHS trust
  • United Bristol Healthcare NHS trust
  • Queen Elizabeth II Hospital
  • Royal Liverpool University NHS trust
  • Central Manchester Healthcare NHS trust
  • London Hospitals:
    • The Royal Hospitals NHS trust
      • 88
    • King's Healthcare NHS trust
    • St. George's NHS trust
    • St. Mary's NHS trust
    • Hammersmith Hospitals NHS trust
    • The Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust
    • University College London Hospitals NHS trust
    • Guy's and St. Thomas's NHS trust
  • University Hospital of Wales Healthcare NHS trust
  • Aberdeen Royal Hospitals NHS trust
  • Dundee Teaching Hospitals NHS trust
  • Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh NHS trust
  • Glasgow Royal Infirmary University NHS trust
  • Royal Group of Hospitals and Dental Hospitals NHS trust

List of medical royal colleges and their faculties

  • Royal College of Ophthalmologists
  • Royal College of Anaesthetists
  • Royal College of Psychiatrists
  • Royal College of General Practitioners
  • Royal College of Physicians
  • Royal College of Surgeons
  • Royal College of Pathologists
  • Royal College of Radiologists
  • Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology
  • Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
  • Royal College of Surgeons (Edinburgh)
  • Royal College of Physicians (Edinburgh)
  • Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons (Glasgow)
  • Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland
  • Faculty of Accident and Emergency Medicine (inter-collegiate faculty)
  • Faculty of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of England
  • Faculty of Occupational Medicine of the Royal College of Physicians
  • Faculty of Public Health Medicine of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the United Kingdom

Mr. Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will examine the practice among medical practitioners of giving up the use of ritalin among children suffering from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder after 12 months' use; and if he will make a statement. [10544]

Mr. Boateng

The use of ritalin to treat children suffering from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a matter for professional and clinical judgment and we have no plans to examine it.

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