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11 Mar 2003 : Column 247W—continued
Waiting Times
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in Greater London have been waiting more than 13 weeks to see a consultant. [101310]
Mr. Hutton: I refer the hon. Member to the response I gave him on Friday 7 March, Official Report, column 1271W.
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in Greater London have been waiting (a) up to six months, (b) 6–12 months, (c) 12–15 months and (d) 15 or more months for hospital treatment in each of the last 12 months. [101311]
Mr. Hutton : I refer the hon. Member to the response I gave him on 5 March 2003, Official Report, columns 1123–24W.
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the latest average waiting time for in-patient treatment is (a) in Greater London and (b) in England; and what the figures were in May 1997. [101312]
Mr. Hutton: The information requested is shown in the table.
| Median wait (months) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Commissioner based | March 1997 | December 2002 |
| London | 3.49 | 2.92 |
| England | 3.05 | 2.88 |
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time for orthopaedic surgery is (a) in England and (b) in Gloucestershire; what steps he is taking to reduce these times; and if he will make a statement. [101657]
11 Mar 2003 : Column 248W
Mr. Hutton [holding answer 7 March 2003]: The information requested is shown in the table.
| Average waiting time (months) | |
|---|---|
| Provider-based | |
| England | 3.92 |
| Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Trust | 3.21 |
| Commissioner-based | |
| England | 3.92 |
| Cheltenham and Tewkesbury PCT | 3.10 |
| West Gloucestershire PCT | 2.69 |
| Cotswold and Vale PCT | 2.88 |
| South Gloucestershire PCT | 4.74 |
Source:
DH Central returns KH07 and QF01
One of the greatest performance challenges of the National Health Service is to improve the speed at which patients can gain access to orthopaedic services. We are addressing long waits for orthopaedics through the NHS Modernisation Agency's Action On Orthopaedic programme. The programme aims to significantly improve this access to care by working with local health communities, developing and sharing good practice.
The Gloucester Hospitals Orthopaedic Departments are one of 37 trusts in the NHS Modernisation Agency's Programme, "Clinical Priorities—First And Fast", within which trusts are redesigning their systems so that all clinically urgent cases are admitted within six weeks and all others are admitted ahead of the Governments target. The programme has just started and is intended to run until next spring.