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18 Nov 2003 : Column 873W—continued

Waiting Lists

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the clinical areas where the NHS in London has longer (a) waiting lists and (b) waiting times than the national average. [133742]

Mr. Hutton: The clinical areas where the national health service in London has longer waiting lists and waiting times than the national average is shown in the tables.

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Consultant specialties in London where the waiting list per 100,000 head of population is higher than the national position: Position at 30 June 2003

		Waiting list per 100,000 head ofpopulation
Specialtycode	Specialty	National	London	Difference
101	Urology	140.39	150.18	9.79
120	Ear, Nose and Throat	196.32	219.81	23.49
141	Restorative dentistry	0.92	4.13	3.21
142	Paediatric dentistry	2.94	8.50	5.56
171	Paediatric surgery	16.78	20.24	3.46
190	Anaesthetics	8.53	9.54	1.02
302	Endocrinology	0.63	2.28	1.65
303	Clinical haematology	0.96	1.02	0.05
305	Clinical pharmacology	0.00	0.01	0.01
310	Audiological medicine	0.05	0.28	0.22
314	Rehabilitation	0.26	0.42	0.16
320	Cardiology	62.52	82.51	20.00
330	Dermatology	4.61	6.96	2.35
340	Thoracic medicine	2.28	7.05	4.77
350	Infectious diseases	0.02	0.03	0.01
361	Nephrology	1.34	3.77	2.43
370	Medical oncology	0.33	1.11	0.79
400	Neurology	4.88	8.71	3.83
401	Clinical neuro-physiology	0.09	0.35	0.26
420	Paediatrics	1.92	4.72	2.80
421	Paediatric neurology	0.51	1.86	1.36
502	Gynaecology	159.14	168.98	9.84
823	Haematology	0.13	0.42	0.29

Source:

Department of Health form QF01

Consultant specialties in London where the median waiting time is higher than the national average: Position at 30 June 2003

			Median waiting times (months)
Specialtycode	Specialty	National average	London average	Difference
100	General surgery	2.68	2.70	0.01
101	Urology	2.38	2.53	0.16
110	Trauma and orthopaedics	3.66	3.74	0.08
120	Ear, Nose and Throat	2.90	3.50	0.60
142	Paediatric dentistry	2.39	2.46	0.07
160	Plastic surgery	3.09	3.44	0.35
191	Pain Management	2.15	2.62	0.47
300	General medicine	1.89	2.06	0.17
303	Clinical haematology	1.68	1.79	0.11
310	Audiological medicine	2.33	2.42	0.09
314	Rehabilitation	2.19	2.21	0.02
330	Dermatology	1.81	2.01	0.20
340	Thoracic medicine	1.85	1.93	0.08
350	Infectious diseases	1.93	2.25	0.32
360	Genito-urinary medicine	1.93	2.25	0.32
361	Nephrology	1.89	2.01	0.12
370	Medical oncology	1.61	1.62	0.01
371	Nuclear medicine	1.72	4.00	2.28
400	Neurology	2.35	2.82	0.48
401	Clinical neuro-physiology	2.76	4.50	1.74
410	Rheumatology	1.81	1.93	0.12
420	Paediatrics	1.98	2.26	0.27
421	Paediatric neurology	2.19	2.41	0.22
430	Geriatric medicine	1.96	2.88	0.91
450	Dental medicine specialities	1.71	2.84	1.14
502	Gynaecology	2.30	2.36	0.06
620	GP (non maternity)	1.70	2.00	0.30
710	Mental illness	1.61	2.79	1.18
800	Clinical Oncology	1.52	1.80	0.28
810	Radiology	2.04	2.14	0.11
823	Haematology	1.63	1.72	0.10

Source:

Department of Health form QF01.

Systemic Neglect (NHS Hospitals)

Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of systemic neglect have been

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reported by users at NHS hospitals in (a) England and (b) Shropshire in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [139115]

Ms Rosie Winterton: This information is not collected centrally.

Waiting Times

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time for hearing assessments for (a) patients under 60 and (b) patients over 60, broken down by primary care trust, was in the last 12 months for which figures are available. [138157]

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Dr. Ladyman: This information is not collected centrally. We have invested £94 million over two years, which will be used to make digital hearing aids available across England by April 2005.

Working Time Directive

Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will revoke the application of the European Working Time Directive as it applies to the healthcare profession. [137071]

Mr. Hutton: No. European Directives are negotiated and implemented across member states and they cannot be revoked by an individual country.

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