Maternity services. Volume II, Minutes of evidence.

  • Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Health Committee
Date:
1992
Catalogue details

Licence: Open Government Licence

Credit: Maternity services. Volume II, Minutes of evidence. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    16 January 1992] [Continued Department's response: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) will be collecting data in order to monitor in vitro fertilisation, artificial insemination by donor, and GIFT using donor gametes. This will include information about the use of ovarian stimulant drugs in these procedures and about multiple births which may result from them. Multiple births above three babies as a result of GIFT or IVF are much less likely. The HFEA issued a Code of Practice in July 1991 in which the Authority stipulated that “No more than three eggs or embryos should be placed in a woman in any one cycle, regardless of the procedure used.” The HFEA will be monitoring this policy. 5. DISABILITY AND FOLLOW-UP OF VERY LOW BIRTHWEIGHT BABIES (a) Does the Department of Health plan to support the existing cerebral palsy registers and to encourage the development and ongoing maintainance of cerebral palsy registers in other health regions? (b) What has the Department done to encourage efforts to improve and standardise the information collected on the Child Health computer system so that reliable data on disability will be readily available. (c) Will the Department support alternative ways of collecting information on childhood disability, for example by sample surveys carried out at regular intervals? Department’s response to 5(a), 5(b) and 5(c): The Department is to discuss the future of cerebral palsy registers with representatives of the Spastics Society including Professor Eva Alberman, Chair of their Epidemiology Panel, at a meeting in early February 1992. Children of very low birthweight are one group who are at increased risk of subsequent disability, particularly cerebral palsy. One of the issues we will wish to explore is whether the requirements under the Children Act 1989 for the identification of children in need and the maintenance of a register of children with disabilities might provide for more effective surveillance of such children. Health authorities are required to collaborate with local authorities in assessing children in need. We agree that the Child Health System, which provides for computerised records to be maintained of the growth and development of all children within a district, can make a major contribution here. The system is now in use in 70 per cent of districts and the Department is supporting the extension of its use to meet health authorities’ duties under the Children Act. 6(a) Can the Department confirm that in its memorandum printed with evidence for 3 July (pages 186-7) and in answers to PQs (10 June, col 446, 21 June, col 324, 25 July, col 911) the Department showed that data provided to the Committee were based on only 55 per cent of births in England in 1989-90 and could not be used to produce tabulations for regions, or for districts. What was the coverage in 1990-91? Department’s response: The Department can confirm that data provided to the Committee were based on 55 per cent of births in England in 1989-90. Regional analyses of estimated percentages of some key data items have now been produced where possible and are attached (Annex H). It is too early to make a precise assessment of maternity