Dear FOI Officer,
Please find attached a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (or the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 where applicable), submitted on behalf of the British Association of Prosthetics and Orthotics (BAPO).
The request relates to workforce planning arrangements for Prosthetic and Orthotic services within your organisation. The attached document contains 10 questions, most of which require brief factual responses. Definitions are included to support consistent interpretation.
1. Does your Trust/Health Board currently provide or commission a Prosthetic service? Yes/No
2. Does your Trust/Health Board currently provide or commission an Orthotic service for patients? Yes/No
3a. If you answered Yes to Question 1: Is your Prosthetic service delivered in-house (i.e. directly employed NHS staff) or is it contracted out to an external provider?
In-house / Contracted / Mixed (please specify) / Not applicable
3b. If you answered Yes to Question 2: Is your Orthotic service delivered in-house (i.e. directly employed NHS staff) or is it contracted out to an external provider?
In-house / Contracted / Mixed (please specify) / Not applicable
4. Does your Trust/Health Board carry out workforce planning analysis for your Allied Health Professional (AHP) workforce? Yes/No
5a. If you answered Yes to Question 4: Does your AHP workforce planning specifically include your Prosthetic service workforce (whether in-house or contracted)? Yes/No/Not Applicable
5b. If you answered Yes to Question 4: Does your AHP workforce planning specifically include your Orthotic service workforce (whether in-house or contracted)? Yes/No/Not Applicable
6a. If your Prosthetic service is contracted out (as indicated in Question 3a): Does your Trust/Health Board carry out workforce planning for the contracted Prosthetic service? Yes/No/Not Applicable
6b. If your Orthotic service is contracted out (as indicated in Question 3b): Does your Trust/Health Board carry out workforce planning for the contracted Orthotic service? Yes/No/Not Applicable
7a. If you answered Yes to Question 6a: How does your Trust/Health Board collate workforce planning data from the contracted Prosthetic service provider? Please describe the process, including the frequency of data collection and what data is gathered.
7b. If you answered Yes to Question 6b: How does your Trust/Health Board collate workforce planning data from the contracted Orthotic service provider? Please describe the process, including the frequency of data collection and what data is gathered.
8. If your Trust/Health Board does not carry out workforce planning for its Prosthetic and/or Orthotic services (whether in-house or contracted), please explain what steps you are taking to secure the prosthetic and/orthotic workforce pipeline.
9. Does your Trust/Health Board include data from its Prosthetic and/or Orthotic services (whether in-house or contracted) in any workforce returns submitted to NHS England, NHS Wales, NHS Scotland, or equivalent national workforce planning bodies? Yes/No/Dont Know please specify which returns
10. Please provide the current whole time equivalent (WTE) staffing establishment for your Prosthetic and/or Orthotic services, brokendown by: (a) Prosthetists, (b) Orthotists, (c) Prosthetic/Orthotic Technicians, (d) Prosthetic/Orthotic support workers (e) Please indicate whether each figure relates to in-house or contracted staff. (Numerical breakdown with in-house/contracted designation)
If you require any clarification to assist with a timely response, please contact me at the details below.
Yours faithfully,