Commons Sense

House of Commons · Westminster Hall

Health and Wellbeing Services: East of England

01 March 2023 · 7 other contributors · 11,838 words

Opened by Priti Patel Con Witham

Responding minister: Helen Whately

NHS

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Priti Patel raised concerns about health and wellbeing services: east of england in Westminster Hall. A government minister responded.

Key points

  • The east of England faces significant health inequalities with challenges including heart disease, lung disease, diabetes, lung cancer, stroke, depressive disorders, falls, and drug-related deaths.
  • The region has the lowest per capita spend on healthcare at 2,889 compared to the national average of 3,236.
  • Healthy life expectancy is a major concern, with men spending over one fifth of their lives in less than good health and women facing similar issues.

Key requests to Government

The lead MP asks the Government to review flexible dentistry contracts, provide more certainty on healthy life expectancy metrics, improve prevention in healthcare, invest in hospital infrastructure, support community pharmacies, address mental health service accountability, and ensure developer contributions materialize for new facilities to meet growing population demands.

How the debate unfolded

MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.

Opened the debate

Priti Patel Con Witham

The east of England faces significant health inequalities with a growing and ageing population, leading to challenges such as heart disease, lung disease, diabetes, lung cancer, stroke, depressive disorders, falls, and drug-related deaths. The region also has the lowest per capita spend on healthcare at £2,889 compared to the national average of £3,236. Healthy life expectancy is a major concern with men spending over one fifth of their lives in less than good health and women facing similar issues. Additionally, there are concerns about GP access, dental care, ambulance services, mental health pressures, and pharmacy funding.

Other contributors (7)
  • Daniel Zeichner Lab Cambridge

    Asks if it was a good idea to hand power back to local areas for NHS dentistry commissioning, highlighting poor constituency experience with accessing NHS dental services.

  • Feryal Clark Lab Enfield North

    Clark highlighted the challenges faced by GPs in the east of England, noting a shortage of fully qualified GPs and inadequate GP services according to the Care Quality Commission. She also raised concerns about maternity care failures, including issues with gas and air pain relief availability. Clark expressed grief over mental health service failures and called for transparency from the Essex mental health inquiry.

  • Giles Watling Con Clacton

    Questions whether centralised NHS England is efficient with devolution of powers and money to local integrated care systems. Notes that private dentists in Clacton are ready but unable to serve the NHS due to lack of flexibility in rules. Brings up the issue of a non-existent primary care hub in Clacton despite the presence of a new community diagnostic centre. Requests that the Minister respond to this matter. The hon. Member emphasized the need for local healthcare provision, noting that practitioners know best and central structures should not dictate community needs. He also pointed out issues with dentistry access and called for flexibility in the system to meet local needs. Suggested that MPs should engage directly with local health services to improve them, citing his involvement in turning around failing GP practices in Clacton. Watling intervened to discuss a meeting he had with EPUT's CEO, who assured him that despite challenges, the trust is actively addressing staff issues. Watling asked if the Minister shared this confidence in EPUT's approach.

  • Jim Shannon DUP Strangford

    Commends the right hon Lady on her Home Secretary role and asks about face-to-face GP appointments. Notes that constituents wish for more such appointments due to the importance of visual assessment by GPs.

  • Mohammad Yasin Lab Bedford

    Critiqued the low per capita spend on health in the east of England at £2,889 compared to the national average of £3,236. Highlighted that the region has the highest population growth rate and poor access to GP, hospital, dental services and ambulances. Also mentioned the high excess mortality rates due to delays in emergency care.

  • Richard Bacon Con South Norfolk

    Highlights the work of Dr Nick Stolls in addressing dental challenges in Norfolk and Suffolk. Suggests that reform is needed for NHS dental contracts to address patient, dentist, and wider NHS issues.

  • Vicky Ford Con Chelmsford

    Commends the Conservative Government for opening a medical school in Chelmsford, training doctors locally. Mentions that the drop-out rate at this school is only 3%, compared to an average of 8% nationally. She invites support from the Minister and her right hon Friend to double the size of the medical school. Announces that from 1 April, women in Mid Essex will be able to access IVF treatment on the NHS, thanks to improved funding levels. Highlights this as an important development for those wishing to start a family. The right hon. Member highlighted challenges such as GP shortages, hospital infrastructure needs, and mental health pressures in Essex. She also praised improvements made by East of England Ambulance Service and Colchester Hospital.

Government Response

Helen Whately

It is a pleasure to respond to this debate, and I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Member for Witham on securing it. She covered a huge amount of ground with passion and insight, including GP numbers in her area, access to dentists, the Essex mental health independent inquiry, community diagnostic centres, and broader health challenges across the east of England. The Government are on track to deliver our manifesto commitment of 26,000 more people working in primary care by 2024, with over 25,000 recruited already. There are now more than 2,000 full-time equivalent doctors in general practice compared to the previous year. Additionally, five new medical schools have been opened, with Anglia Ruskin Medical School contributing significantly to increasing the number of future doctors across the country. £15 million of funding was provided for dentistry, including £2 million specifically for the east of England region. The Government continue to work on improving the dental contract and access to dentists, while also addressing ongoing challenges in staff engagement with the Essex mental health independent inquiry. Community diagnostic centres are being established across the country to provide easier access to vital community diagnostic services. The Government are determined to improve health disparities through levelling up initiatives, including strategies set out by integrated care boards and partnerships. Fiscal constraints have led to an extra £14.1 billion put into health and social care, with a record funding increase of £7.5 billion for social care over the next two years.

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