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PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Heart Diseases: Older People (24 May 2016)

Question Asked

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department has taken to improve equality of access to echo-cardiography for the identification of heart valve disease for people aged over 65.

Asked by:
Fabian Hamilton (Labour)

Answer

NHS England is holding a Clinical Summit on 15 June 2016, bringing together cardiologists and cardiac surgeons to examine the issues relating to heart valve disease. This will discuss variation and the outputs will be used to inform the future commissioning approach within specialised commissioning.

In addition, the office of the Chief Scientific Officer for NHS England is working with the National Clinical Director for Heart Disease and Health Education England to look at ways to improve provision and increase access to echocardiography for the identification of heart valve disease.

NHS England has also undertaken a significant programme of work on congenital heart services, working very closely with the relevant stakeholders, including patients and their representatives, clinicians and hospital managers. This work produced a new set of service standards with the aim of achieving the best outcomes for all patients, consistently across the whole country and with excellent patient experience. Following consultation these standards were agreed by the board of NHS England in July 2015 and came into effect on 1 April 2016.


Answered by:
Jane Ellison (Conservative)
2 June 2016

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