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The documents in this bulletin are Crown copyright but may be reproduced by NHS and Council staff without formal permission or charge for personal or in-house use - ©2002

Contents:

NHS and Social Care interest

1. Merger of MCA and MDA
2. Device alert - MDA DA2002(07) Eli Lilly HumaPen Ergo insulin pens
3. Mental health NSF stage 4 local implementation plans, (LIP 4)

NHS interest

4. Safety notice - MDA SN2002(19) Mobile X-ray unit: Risk of electric shock from GEC D38 and CD38S mobiles.
5. Consultant contract
6. European working time directive (WTD)
7. New fees and allowances payable to doctors for sessional work in community health services
8. GP dispensing feescale
9. Repeat dispensing schemes
10. National medicines management services collaborative programme - third wave
11. Sexual health and HIV strategy - provision of hepatitis B vaccine to Genito urinary medicine clinics
12. Local pharmaceutical services - directions and regulations
13. Removal of dual accounting burden on NHS charities
14. Local handling of trust-based survey results and proposals for them to be included in the forthcoming patient prospectus
15. Consultation on draft guidance on modernising pathology services
16. English survey of applied psychologists
17. Implementing the GP out-of-hours (OOHs) report : Raising standards for patients. New partnerships in Out-of-Hours Care

Social Care interest

18. CI(2002)7 Inspection of mental health services
19. Care homes (amendment) regulations 2002

NHS/Social Care interest

1. Merger of MCA and MDA

Ministers announced on 13 June that the Medicines Control Agency (MCA) and the Medical Devices Agency (MDA) are to become a single agency with effect from 1 April 2003. The new agency will remain an executive agency of the Department of Health, and will continue with all the functions currently carried out by the two agencies.

Full details

As plans proceed, there will be discussions with all stakeholders, including those in the NHS.

2. Device alert - MDA DA2002(07) Eli Lilly HumaPen Ergo insulin pens

This device alert was issued on 10 June 2002 to NHS trusts, primary care trusts, chief executives, social services directors and National Care Standards Commission head quarters. It was also faxed to liaison officers of trusts, primary care and National Care Standards Commission for action and onward distribution as specified in the notice.

For further information on the role and nomination of liaison officers e-mail bs@medical-devices.gov.uk or visit http://www.medical-devices.gov.uk

Antony Sheehan and John Mahoney, Joint Heads of Mental Health Services Branch write to leads of MH NSF Local Implementaion Teams, LITs, to advise on the arrangements for this years, (Stage 4) Local Implementation Plan reporting process. This builds upon the LIP 3 exercise last year.
Directors of Health and Social Care, Chief Executives of HAs, PCT's, and NHS Trusts providing mental health services and Directors of Local Authority Social Services Departments are advised within the letter of the action LIT leads will be taking to collate the reports on behalf of local constituent members of LITs.

Letter

4. Safety notice - MDA SN2002(19) Mobile X-ray unit: Risk of electric shock from GEC D38 and CD38S mobiles.

This Safety Notice was issued on 10 June 2002 to NHS trusts, chief executives and National Care Standards Commission headquarters. It was also issued to liaison officers of trusts and National Care Standards Commission headquarters for action and for onward distribution as specified in the notice.

For further information on the role and nomination of liaison officers e-mail us at:
bs@medical-devices.gov.uk
http://www.medical-devices.gov.uk

Following last week's announcement on the consultant contract, a summary of the framework agreement and background that may be cascaded to HR Directors and Medical Directors will be sent to all chief executives later this week. If you do not receive this, please email: enquiry-box@doh.gsi.gov.uk or telephone (0113) 254 5710.

6. European working time directive (WTD)

Excessive hours worked by junior doctors has been a cause for concern for some years. There are a number of key issues that we need to address:

• From August 2003 the need to reduce average weekly working hours for junior doctors to 56 hours a week. This is to comply with the new junior doctors' contract and supercedes the WTD which required a reduction to 58 hours by August 2004. The WTD requires a further reduction to 48 hours by 2009 (exceptionally, by 2012).
• From August 2004, the need to ensure all junior doctors have 11 hours' rest in every 24 hours.
• To acknowledge the impact the SiMAP ruling (see below) will have on the provision of resident on-call, given that all time spent resident on-call will from 2004 be considered as working time for the purposes of maximum working hours and pay.

We know that there is concern in the NHS about how to design services and posts for WTD compliance. That is why we are talking to the NHS about how we can help trusts achieve compliance. It is already clear that we cannot achieve both compliance and the level of service we want by delivering healthcare in the same way that we have in the past. We must also avoid making short-term decisions that could restrict services both now and in the long-term. The starting point should be to ensure solutions enhance, not diminish, local health services.

The DH website has further information on the WTD, a table with key dates and an explanation of the SiMAP ruling at www.doh.gov.uk/workingtime

DH contact Shain Clarke at Shain.clarke@doh.gsi.gov.uk

Agreement has been reached on the new fees and allowances payable to doctors for sessional work in community health services. The increase is 3.6 per cent and is awarded in full from 1 July 2002. The letter containing details of the increase will be available on the Department's COIN database at
www.doh.gov.uk/publications/coinh.html after 12.00 PM on 21 June 2002.

This letter will not be issued in hard copy form, therefore employers will need to print off the copies they require.

For further information, please e-mail kate.horsfield@doh.gsi.gov.uk

Please note that the new dispensing feescales for GPs, applicable from 1 May 2002, can be found on the internet at www.doh.gov.uk/pricare/feesgpdispensing0203.htm

If you have any questions about the feescale, contact Katy Lindfield at katy.lindfield@doh.gsi.gov.uk or 0113 254 6337

The NHS Plan announced the development of a repeat dispensing scheme nation-wide by 2004. Pharmacy in the Future added that many patients would benefit in 2002. The scheme will make it easier for patients with chronic conditions to obtain repeat prescriptions, speeding up services and relieving pressure on GP surgeries. It is also an opportunity to make better use of pharmacists' skills by helping patients get the most out of their medicines and reduce waste of medicines.

The Department is aiming to have 30 pathfinder sites in place this autumn. Details of the proposed scheme are available at www.doh.gov.uk/nhsrepeatdispensing

The scheme has been developed in consultation with members of the General Practitioners Committee (GPC) and the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) and the proposals are currently with these committees for comment.

The scheme depends on changes to GPs' computer software. By the end of July, when the Department has established which GP computer suppliers can make these changes, primary care trusts (PCTs) will be invited via the Chief Executive's Bulletin to apply to participate in a repeat dispensing pathfinder site.

For further information contact Susan Grieve, Principal Pharmaceutical Officer. susan.grieve@doh.gsi.gov.uk

Primary care trusts are invited to apply to be a third wave site for the National Medicines Management Services (MMS) Collaborative Programme beginning in October 2002. This programme is to help meet commitments in the NHS Plan and Pharmacy in the Future - Implementing the NHS Plan for every PCG/T to have such schemes by 2004.

As with the first wave of 26 sites and the second wave of 40 sites, a third wave of up to 40 sites will be supported by funding from the Department and by the project team based at the National Prescribing Centre (NPC). Sites chosen for the third wave will recruit local facilitators to work closely with GPs, pharmacists and primary healthcare teams to re-shape local services so they meet the needs of patients and ensure value for money.

The project team is writing to all PCT chief executives and prescribing advisers with more details. This letter, further guidance on the MMS programme and the application form will be on the NPC website at www.npc.co.uk/mms from Friday 21June.

If you are interested in applying, please let the NPC project team know of your interest by Friday 26 July (email to npc-mms@liverpool-ha.nhs.uk)

Completed applications should then be returned by 12.00 mid-day Wednesday 28th August 2002 to:

Richard Seal, Medicines Management Project Team Leader, National Prescribing Centre,
70 Pembroke Place, Liverpool L69 3GF

For further information about the collaborative programme or applying, contact the project team on 0151 794 8028/8131 or e-mail Richard.Seal@liverpool-ha.nhs.uk.

For information about the Government's NHS pharmacy programme, telephone Susan Grieve on 020 7210 5747 or e-mail susan.grieve@doh.gsi.gov.uk.

The Department is providing centrally purchased hepatitis B vaccine to Genito Urinary Medicine (GUM) clinics in 2002/2003-2004/2005 as part of implementation of the sexual health and HIV strategy. The strategy proposes improving the uptake of hepatitis B immunisation by homosexual and bisexual men attending GUM clinics as they are at increased risk of infection. The letter sent to GUM clinics on 20 June announcing vaccine distribution details is available at /www.doh.gov.uk/hepatitisb/extravaccine.htm

For further information, please contact Helen Christmas on 020-7972-6061 or email
helen.christmas@doh.gsi.gov.uk

Directions have been signed which require HAs to direct PCTs to exercise Local Pharmaceutical Services (LPS) functions associated with preparing LPS proposals. This includes setting up processes to develop pilot schemes including consultation and submission to secretary of state for approval. Full text of the directions is available on the LPS website www.doh.gov.uk/localpharmaceuticalservices/lpsdirections.pdf. HA Chief Executives are requested to ensure that appropriate action is taken without delay.

The first set of regulations for LPS pilots came into force on 5 June and are available at www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/si/si2002/20020888.htm. The main provisions cover designation of neighbourhoods, premises and descriptions of premises as well as provision for financial assistance for preparatory work.

Information and guidance about LPS is available from the Department's website www.doh.gov.uk/localpharmaceuticalservices/guidance.pdf with links to relevant sites.

If you have any queries contact Eleanor Shenton, LPS Business Manager at eleanor.shenton@doh.gsi.gov.uk

We are consulting on a proposal to remove the requirement for NHS bodies to submit charity accounts both to the Department of Health and the Charity Commission. The proposal is that they should only be submitted to the Charity Commission. This would require changes to primary legislation and would be effected by a Regulatory Reform Order (RRO). The consultation document can be found on the Department of Health's web-site: www.doh.gov.uk/nhscharitiesconsultation

For further details contact David Parker at david.a.parker@doh.gsi.gov.uk

Communicating results:
Acute trusts have recently received, or will soon be receiving, feedback from the national inpatient survey carried out this spring. PCTs will also be receiving results of a national survey of GP services, carried out earlier this year. In both cases, the results are intended to:

• inform local action plans which will drive forward service improvements
• inform Trust and PCT star ratings to ensure that the patient experience is fairly reflected.

The Department is requesting that the survey information be retained within individual organisations and used to inform survey action plans until mid-July when the 'star ratings' are scheduled for publication.

This will enable trusts and PCTs to convey a comprehensive 'package' of information, which considers both the local survey findings and the national star ratings.

Further guidance about how best this kind of package could be compiled will be made available from the Department within the next three weeks.

Patient prospectus:
The first patient prospectus will be compiled by PCTs on behalf of the local health community for publication in September 2002. It will provide information to the public about the availability, quality and performance of local health services. The aim will be to deliver a prospectus to every household within the PCT's geographic area using new and established methods of communication. The Department is working with a cross section of NHS representatives to establish a framework of guidance which will help PCTs by:

• drawing up an 'electronic template' against which all prospectuses can be easily compiled
• issuing guidance to contributing trusts about what material they should pre-prepare
• offering practical advice about distribution options and relative costs.

The Department will issue detailed guidance and contact numbers on its website in early July so that the prospectuses can be compiled over the summer and be ready for distribution in September.

The Department of Health published draft guidance for the NHS on modernising pathology services on 20 June 2002. We are seeking views on the proposals in Pathology - the Essential Service - Draft Guidance on Modernising Pathology Services which is available on our website at www.doh.gov.uk/pathologymodernisation/essentserv.htm. The consultation period ends on 30 September 2002.

The key change we propose is that NHS pathology services should be delivered through larger managed networks. These would be managed by a lead trust on behalf of all the trusts involved. The draft guidance also includes good practice guidance on a range of issues, including standardisation, the pathology workforce, IT and technology. We have also included proposals for monitoring implementation.

For further details contact Deirdre Feehan on 020 7972 4789 or Paul Clegg on 020 7972 4302. You can also write to them at Pathology Modernisation Team, Department of Health, 423 Wellington House, 133-155 Waterloo Road, London SE1 8UG

We are giving you advance notice of a survey of applied psychologists working in health and social care, the prison service and other settings.

The short questionnaire is being sent of heads of psychology for distribution to their staff and is aimed at people whose work is explicitly related to their background in psychology. It is asking for personal, professional and job information.

The survey date is 1 July with a deadline for returns of 31 July.

If you have any queries, please contact Paul Fensom on 0113 254 5792 or email paul.fensom@doh.gsi.gov.uk

17. Implementing the GP out-of-hours (OOHs) report : Raising standards for patients. New partnerships in Out-of-Hours Care

As from 1st October 2002, all organised GP out-of-hours providers will have to be accredited, and responsibility for that accreditation will rest with PCTs. The role that PCTs will play in accreditation and the timescales within which it will be delivered, as well as the Quality Standards that those engaged in the delivery of out-of-hours services are required to meet by 2004, are outlined at www.doh.gov.uk/pricare/oohreview.htm

A series of training conferences will be held to support PCTs and organised providers as they take on these new roles. For organised providers, who will need to submit their application by 1 October 2002, these conferences will take place during June and July 2002. PCTs, who will become involved in accreditation visits to providers from January 2003, will have their training held in November and December 2002. £1.4 million will be made available to support the work of PCTs and organised providers as they work through the first cycle of accreditation between now and March 2004.
Please email queries to oohaccreditation@doh.gsi.gov.uk

Social Care Interest

18. CI(2002)7 Inspection of mental health services

Modernising Mental Health Services is a report from the Social Services Inspectorate about an inspection of mental health services conducted nationally in 19 councils between June 2000 and September 2001. It describes how far councils with social services responsibilities have begun to respond to Government policies for the modernisation of social and mental health services. The report focuses on how well users (particularly those from black and minority communities) are serviced and how far councils have planned to ensure that mental health services are safe, sound and supportive.

www.doh.gov.uk/ssi/modernisingmhs.htm

Draft regulations to amend the Care Homes Regulations 2001 have been issued this week for consultation. Responses are requested by 17 July. Copies of the draft regulations can be found at: www.doh.gov.uk/jointunit/freenursingcare

If you have any queries please e-mail John.Crook@doh.gsi.gov.uk or Jenny.Mudge@doh.gsi.gov.uk

The documents in this bulletin are Crown copyright but may be reproduced by NHS and Local Authority staff without formal permission or charge for personal or in-house use - ©2002

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copyright: © | Last updated: 20 June, 2002