Previous Section Index Home Page

14 May 2004 : Column 628W—continued

Fluoride

Mr. Etherington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the availability of routine NHS dental treatment to remove the physical manifestations of dental fluorosis. [172111]

Ms Rosie Winterton: Dental fluorosis is characterised by a flecking or more rarely a mottling of the teeth, which may leave some people concerned about the appearance of their teeth, although they are endowed with the extra resistance to decay offered by exposure to fluoride.

The report, A Systematic Review of Water Fluoridation, published by the University of York in October 2000 estimated that only 12.5 per cent, of cases of dental fluorosis were the cause of aesthetic concern. Often the effects can be ameliorated by dental polishing or alternatively National Health Service patients can, if clinically appropriate, have veneers fitted to the front of the affected teeth.

General Practitioners

Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of general practitioners (a) work part-time, (b) will retire in three years' time and (c) have indicated that they are prepared to work out of hours under the new general practitioner contract. [171507]

Dr. Ladyman: Of the 33,564 all general practitioners employed in the National Health Service as at September 2003 8,687 or 25.9 per cent, were part-time.

We do not collect information on the number of GPs who will retire in three years' time. Neither do we centrally collect any information on the workings of local out of hours services. Strategic health authorities have responsibility for the performance management of their primary care trusts in their delivery of out of hours services.
 
14 May 2004 : Column 629W
 

Health Services

Mr. Borrow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many rapid access chest pain clinics there are in South Ribble. [171270]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Lancashire Teaching Hospitals National Health Service Trust has rapid access chest pain clinics at both the Royal Preston Hospital and Chorley and South Ribble Hospital. Both clinics are meeting the national service framework two week target for patients to be seen from date of referral by a General Practitioner.

Mr. Borrow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many residents in South Ribble aged over 60 years have benefited from the abolition of charges for eye tests; [171272]
 
14 May 2004 : Column 630W
 

(2) how many senior citizens in South Ribble have access to free eye tests. [171279]

Miss Melanie Johnson: I refer my hon. Friend to the response I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Workington (Tony Cunningham) today.

Mr. Borrow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what changes there have been to NHS waiting list times in the last seven years for residents of South Ribble. [171275]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Information most closely associated with place of residency is not collected on a constituency level, but at a health services commissioner level.

Data are shown as follows for the South Lancashire Health Authority for the period 1997 to 2002 and the   Chorley and South Ribble and West Lancashire Primary Care Trusts for 2003.
In-patient waiting list in months

Name of CommissionerTotal0–23–56–89–1112–1415–1718+
1996–97South Lancashire HA10,0924,5652,5871,6961,069160123
1997–98South Lancashire HA10,4144,5662,3911,5801,1285631860
1998–99South Lancashire HA9,1794,2592,2851,354839356860
1999–2000South Lancashire HA8,6044,2512,0421,260715270660
2000–01South Lancashire HA8,2834,4011,9791,041559208950
2001–02South Lancashire HA8,0474,3171,9971,0905449900
March 2003Chorley and South Ribble PCT4,7613,1081,10851035000
March 2003West Lancashire PCT3,0421,390844564244000
September 2003Chorley and South Ribble PCT4,9223,2781,17844719000
September 2003West Lancashire PCT2,8131,68178830638000




Source:
Department of Health QF01




Out-patient waiting list in weeks

Name13–2526+
1997–98South Lancashire HA2,2006,291
1998–99South Lancashire HA2,7901,373
1999–2000South Lancashire HA2,1355,07
2000–01South Lancashire HA1,823374
2001–02South Lancashire HA1,6761










Name13–1717–2121–2626+
March 2003Chorley and South Ribble PCT36310800
March 2003West Lancashire PCT1967200
December 2003Chorley and South Ribble PCT6151700
December 2003West Lancashire PCT250100




Source:
Department of Health



Mr. Borrow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many residents in South Ribble awaiting heart surgery have had the option of choosing an alternative hospital for quicker treatment in the last 12 months. [171268]

Miss Melanie Johnson: This information requested is not collected centrally.

Mr. Pickthall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many residents in West Lancashire aged over 60 years have benefited from the abolition of charges for eye tests. [171547]

Miss Melanie Johnson: I refer my hon. Friend to the response I gave to my hon. Friend, the Member for Workington (Mr. Cunningham) today.

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many senior citizens in Workington constituency have access to free eye tests; [170704]

(2) how many residents in Workington constituency aged over 60 years have benefited from the abolition of charges for eye tests. [170705]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Data for the number of sight tests by constituency or by the number of senior citizens is not collected centrally.

The total number of sight tests paid for by Cumbria and Lancashire Strategic Health Authority in the year 2002–03 for those aged 60 and over was 189,100.
 
14 May 2004 : Column 631W
 

The total number of eligible for a free eye test for those aged 60 and over was 429,300. Sight tests cannot be equated to the number of patients.

Department of Health statistics.
 
14 May 2004 : Column 632W
 

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS (a) therapists and (b) scientists were located in Workington constituency in each of the last seven years. [170707]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The information requested is shown in the table.
NHS hospital and community health services: Qualified scientific, therapeutic and technical staff in the Cumbria and Lancashire Strategic Health Authority area by organisation as at 30 September each specified year
headcount

1997199819992000200120022003
Q13Cumbria and Lancashire SHA total3,3523,4863,5953,7063,7583,8934,279
5D6West Cumbria PCT(15)(15)(15)(15)128128130
RE7West Cumbria Health Care NHS Trust187209224243(15)(15)(15)
RLGCarlisle Hospitals NHS Trust200206230230(15)(15)(15)
RNLNorth Cumbria Acute Hospitals NHS Trust(15)(15)(15)(15)351331366


(15) Not applicable
Source:
Department of Health Non-Medical Workforce Census




Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of suspected cancer patients in Workington constituency saw an NHS consultant within two weeks in each of the last seven years. [170709]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Information from 2000–01, the earliest available, is shown in the table.
Waiting times for first consultant outpatient appointment for suspected cancer following urgent GP referral—Workington

Seen within two
weeks
QuarterNHS trustPercentageNumber
2000–01

4

West Cumbria Health Care NHS
      Trust
89.6

190
2000–014Carlisle Hospitals NHS Trust79.6227
2001–021North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust89.8467
2001–022North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust85.3492
2001–023North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust84.9594
2001–024North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust78.7511
2002–031North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust83.1674
2002–032North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust85.6734
2002–033North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust87.1757
2002–034North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust81.2722
2003–041North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust82.4831
2003–042North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust96.9946
2003–043North Cumbria Acute NHS Trust99.8991




Source:
Department of Health form QMCW.



Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many residents in Workington constituency awaiting heart surgery have had the option of choosing an alternative hospital for quicker treatment in the last 12 months. [170711]

Miss Melanie Johnson: This information is not collected centrally.

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the levels of elective admissions to the NHS in Workington constituency in the past five years. [170712]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The information requested is shown in the table.
Count of in-year elective (waiting time, booked, planned) admissions—Primary care trust of responsibility—5D6 West Cumbria PCT—NHS Hospitals, England 1998–99 to 2002–03

PCT of responsibility1998–991999–20002000–012001–022002–03
5D6 West Cumbria PCT16,39516,16316,57916,57716,613




Notes:
1. An in-year admission is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider, excluding admissions beginning before 1 April at the start of the datayear. Periods of care on-going at the end of the datayear (unfinished admission episodes) are included. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.
2. Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (i.e. the data are ungrossed).
Source:
Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health.




Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much public funding has been spent on heart disease and cancer care in Workington constituency in each of the last five years. [170716]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The information requested is   not collected centrally. Allocation of funding for particular treatments are matters for local primary care trusts.

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much public funding has been spent on health in Workington constituency in each of the last seven years. [170718]


 
14 May 2004 : Column 633W
 

Miss Melanie Johnson: The information is not available in the format requested. Expenditure per weighted head of the population in the Cumbria and Lancashire Strategic Health Authority (SHA) area, which includes the constituency of Workington, has increased from £600.03 in 1997–98 to £1,173.57 in 2002–03 (the latest year available). This does not represent the total expenditure per head as an element of health expenditure cannot be identified by SHA area.


Next Section Index Home Page