§ 11. Mr. RooneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of trends in the numbers of emergency admissions to hospitals. [2183]
§ Mr. DorrellThe number of emergency admissions to hospital increased by an average of 3 per cent. each year in the five years to 1993-94. That is broadly in line with the increase in total admissions.
§ Mr. RooneyIs the Secretary of State aware that staffing levels in Bradford royal infirmary's accident and emergency department are far worse than those in any comparable department in the country? Has he any intention of meeting regional and district health authorities to set minimum staffing levels so that patients charter standards are met?
§ Mr. DorrellPatients charter standards define the standard that a patient is entitled to expect when he or she approaches the health service for care, whether through an accident and emergency department or through any other department. It is obviously the responsibility of trust 133 management, in consultation with the health authority, to make certain that those standards are delivered. I am sure that that will be the guiding principle in Bradford, as in every other part of the country.
§ Mr. CongdonDoes my right hon. Friend agree that those figures demonstrate the need for hospitals to have proper systems in place to ensure the prompt admission and speedy discharge of patients? Is it not vital for social services departments up and down the country to get their act together to ensure the proper discharge of elderly patients into the community?
§ Mr. DorrellMy hon. Friend is entirely right. The relationship between the health service and social services departments in every part of the country is the key to the delivery of the objectives of both the health service and social services departments, and it is given a high priority throughout the health service.