(2) what mechanisms she has put in place to ensure that service providers commissioned by her Department are meeting the Improving Outcomes guidance for urological cancers in relation to (a) multi-disciplinary team working and (a) access to specialist nurses.
Strategic health authorities were asked to submit action plans to demonstrate how they will implement the guidance on Improving Outcomes in urological cancers. Progress against these action plans is monitored by the Department and the Healthcare Commission. The majority of cancer networks reported at December 2006 that the guidance would be fully implemented by December 2007.
The guidance has also been translated into a series of measures for inclusion in the Manual of Cancer Services 2004. All cancer networks in England have now been peer reviewed against these measures, which include measures about urological cancer multi-disciplinary teams including urology nurse specialists. Reports of the local peer review visits for each cancer network can be found on the Cancer Quality Improvement Network System (CQuINS) database at www.cquins.nhs.uk. A national summary will also be produced and is expected to be available in the summer.