Written question asked by Richard Taylor (Independent (affiliation)) on Wednesday, 29 October 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 4 November 2008. It was answered by Ann Keen (Labour) on Tuesday, 4 November 2008 on behalf of the Department of Health.

Venous Thromboembolism

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make risk assessments for venous thromboembolism mandatory for all patients on admission to hospital.

Answer: We expect this venous thromboembolism (VTE) risk assessment policy to be adopted throughout the national health service (NHS). Currently, at the request of the Chief Medical Officer, the Chair of the national implementation group is visiting throughout the NHS to discuss with senior managers and doctors their strategies for implementing VTE risk assessment in their hospitals. We will be monitoring the position closely and formally reviewing the policy in a year's time.If there is inconsistency in, or lack of commitment to, implementation, we will consider making it mandatory to perform risk assessments.

Secondary information