PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Heart Diseases (16 November 2016)
Question Asked
Asked by:
Dr Rupa Huq (Labour)
Answer
The new standards for congenital heart disease services were initially drafted by the Standards Group, which was convened for that purpose, and not by the Clinical Reference Group (CRG). This was because work on the standards started before the formation of NHS England and the CRG system.
The draft standards, prepared by the Standards Group and considered by the Clinical Advisory Panel, listed fewer paediatric specialties in the category that ‘must’ be co-located on the same hospital site with paediatric cardiac services and more in the category that ‘should’ be co-located on the same hospital site than in the final standards as agreed by the NHS England Board.
The Standards Group did not advise the Clinical Advisory Panel that the standards should reflect the existing availability of services. It has always been recognised that the standards should describe how services should ideally be set up rather than how they currently exist.
Answered by:
Philip Dunne (Conservative)
24 November 2016
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