§ Baroness Barkerasked Her Majesty's Government:
How the budget allocated year-on-year to intermediate care within the National Health Service has been allocated to each region. [HL354]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathFunding for intermediate care forms part of unified locations to health authorities. Unified allocations are based on a weighted capitation formula which determines every health authority's fair share of availabe resources.
§ Baroness Barkerasked Her Majesty's Government:
What arrangements they have put in place to monitor the levels of spending on intermediate care services in (a) each National Health Service region; (b) each primary care trust; and (c) each local authority; and [HL355]
How they propose to record and report on the use which is made by National Health Service regions of the budgets allocated to them for intermediate care services; and [HL356]
181WAWhat arrangements they propose to assess the quality of intermediate care services and, within that assessment, to collect, monitor and respond to the views and experiences of older people. [HL357]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathArrangements for planning, monitoring and evaluating local intermediate care services were set out in the Department of Health circularIntermediate Care (HSC 2001:01: LAC (2001)01), published on 19 January 2001. A copy is available in the Library.
§ Baroness Barkerasked Her Majesty's Government:
What is their planned annual spending to be dedicated to intermediate care for (i) 2001–02, (ii) 2002–03, (iii) 2003–04; and to specify for each year (1) the number of intermediate care beds that this will deliver, (2) in which health authority these beds will be located, and (3) whether these beds will be located in (a) a hospital, or (b) a care home; and [HL456]
What is the intermediate care budget for this financial year; and whether, if the full allocation is not spent this year, it will be ring-fenced for use in intermediate care in the following financial year. [HL457]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathDetails of the funding of intermediate care and community equipment services were set out in a joint Health Service and Local Authority Circular (HSC 2001/001—LAC (2001)1)Intermediate Care, issued on 19 January 2001. The National Health Service Plan sets a target of at least 5,000 additional intermediate care beds by 2003–04. The National Service Framework for Older People, published on 27 March, sets an interim milestone of at least 1,500 additional intermediate care beds by March 2002 compared with the 1999–2000 baseline. Information on the number of additional intermediate care beds by health authority, and in which setting, is not yet available. All these publications are available in the Library.
§ Baroness Barkerasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many intermediate care beds their commitment in the National Health Service Plan will deliver; and how many (i) occupational therapists, (ii) physiotherapists, (iii) auxiliaries, (iv) care assistants, (v) nurses and (vi) nursing assistants will be required to staff these beds. [HL458]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathThe National Health Service Plan set a target of at least 5,000 additional intermediate care beds by 2003–04. Staffing levels required will vary according to the model of care.
§ Baroness Barkerasked Her Majesty's Government:
(i) How many patients they expect to benefit from the extra intermediate care beds announced in the National Health Service Plan each year for the next three financial years including the current financial year; (ii) what assessment they have made of the average length of stay for each patient; and (iii) what 182WA estimate they have made of percentage bed occupancy over the same period. [HL459]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathThe National Service Framework for Older People, published on 27 March, sets milestones for at least 60,000 additional people receiving intermediate care services (all models of care) by March 2002, and at least 220,000 by March 2004, compared with the 1999–2000 baseline. Information is not currently available about average length of stay for in-patient intermediate care, or percentage bed occupancy. A period of intermediate care should not normally exceed six weeks and will frequently last no more than one to two weeks. The report of the National Beds Inquiry (February 2000) stated that an average bed occupancy of no more than 82 per cent in the general and acute sector was required to avoid problems arising from peaks in demand and emergency pressures.
§ Baroness Barkerasked Her Majesty's Government:
What performance indicators they will introduce to measure the performance of the increased number of intermediate care beds announced in the National Health Service Plan. [HL461]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathThe National Health Service performance monitoring system will monitor developments on all the targets in the NHS relating to intermediate care, including the provision of intermediate care beds.