Allergies
Millions of allergy sufferers are being failed by the NHS, MPs have said.
GPs fail to diagnose the condition and are often ignorant of treatment options, while there are big shortages of specialist staff and clinics, according to the all-party Commons health committee.
Government Response: Department of Health
Stephen Ladyman, health minister, said: "Those of us who suffer from simple, albeit severe, allergies are well-used to coping with the problems our allergy presents with the help of advice from our GP, our practice nurse, the pharmacist or NHS direct; or a self-help group.
"GPs and specialist nurses provide general allergy services in the first instance and patients can then be referred to dermatologists, respiratory consultants and in some cases, paediatricians to treat a variety of allergy conditions.
"We are supporting GP specialists but planning local services to meet local needs is a matter for primary care trusts who now hold about 80 per cent of the NHS budget.
"However, there are some people with complex, multiple allergies who need and deserve specialist advice and support to help them to maximise their health and well-being.
"The substantial extra investment in the NHS will help deliver service improvements across the board, including allergy services, and it is the responsibility of local primary care trusts to ensure they are commissioning services sufficient to meet local need.
"The children's national service framework, which will be implemented over the next ten year will ensure that when services are developed they are age appropriate and accessible.
"The chief medical officer and I will study the health committee's report very carefully over the next few weeks and will publish a detailed response as soon as possible."
Party Response: Liberal Democrats
Paul Burstow MP, liberal democrat health spokesman, said: "This report should come as a wake up call to ministers who, through their obsession with targets, have put tackling allergies to the back of the queue.
"The NHS must take allergies more seriously. It is not just a quality of life issue, allergies can be a matter of life and death.
"Making sure the primary care team, and GPs in particular, are better trained is the key to improving the NHS response to allergies.
"The lack of specialist services again demonstrates that targets lead to Cinderella services."
Stakeholder Response: Allergy UK
A spokesman for Allergy UK said: "Allergy
"Allergy UK hope that the government will heed the recommendations made by the select committee and will announce in the near future an action plan for the building of a national allergy service thereby ensuring that allergy sufferers are no longer left to fend for themselves or take part in a post code lottery for treatment."
Stakeholder Response: Royal College of Physicians
Professor Stephen Holgate, chairman of the Royal College of Physicians' allergy working party, said: "We welcome the health select committee's report on the provision of allergy services and their endorsement of the recommendations that we made in the 2003 RCP report 'Allergy: The unmet need - a blueprint for better patient care'.
"We support the committee's recommendations for the creation of a national allergy service within the NHS and the development of a major specialist centre for each area of the country. We are delighted that the committee has recommended an increase in the number of trainees in allergy and the creation of a minimum of 20 allergy consultant posts.
"We agree with the committee that the Department of Health should play a leading role in bringing allergy into the mainstream of the NHS in order to overcome the current inadequate provision and poor quality of care which is severely letting down allergy sufferers today.
"We look forward to the government's response to the health select committee report and the proposals outlined in our 2003 report."
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