§ 2.39 p.m.
§ Lord PLATTMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are satisfied with the provision made for the treatment of patients with kidney failure; and if not, what plans they have for improvement.
§ Lord WELLS-PESTELLNo, my Lords. Facilities for the treatment of chronic renal failure are insufficient to meet the total need. The extent to which they can be increased is for Health Authorities to determine, having regard to other competing claims on their resources. There is also a need for more transplants to take place, as the noble Lord will know, but this is governed by the availability of cadaver kidneys which at the present moment remains insufficient.
§ Lord PLATTMy Lords, I thank the noble Lord for that not very satisfactory reply. With regard to his first point, may I ask how it is that the Department of Health and Social Security withdrew a grant to the Royal Free Hospital for the treatment of children with renal failure, and, if they can withdraw a grant, why the Department cannot make another grant in its place, or more grants? With 4 regard to the supply of cadaver kidneys, what exactly are Her Majesty's Government doing to increase the supply? There are many road accidents and there is no shortage of kidneys.
§ Lord WELLS-PESTELLMy Lords, the grant was given for research purposes. It was given for a specific purpose and for a limited period. That is why the arrangement to which the noble Lord has referred has come to an end. With regard to what the Government are doing, they and the Department have encouraged the public to give their help via the kidney transplant donor scheme. Kidney donor cards are circulated through a whole variety of agencies including surgeries, chemists, hospital waiting areas and so on. We sent out 6 million kidney donor cards last year to the various agencies drawing attention to the need, and the Chief Medical Officer of Health wrote to all area medical officers, regional medical officers, regional administrators, blood transfusion directors and area administrators, drawing attention to the need for more kidneys for transplantation. But 6 million cards were issued last year, although that does not mean that 6 million came back.
§ Lord AMULREEMy Lords, can the noble Lord tell me whether there has been any increase in the supply of dialysers which I believe are called quick-acting and are, I think, made in France? Secondly, can the noble Lord say anything about dialysers which people can carry about with them when they are travelling or going on holiday?
§ Lord WELLS-PESTELLMy Lords, the only information I can give the noble Lord is with regard to patients who are on dialysers. On 30th June 1975, in England, 1,224 patients were being treated in their own homes, and 598 in hospital units, making a total of 1,822. In the year ending 30th June 1976, which was only a week or two ago, 580 kidney transplants were carried out in the United Kingdom. In the previous year 599 kidney transplants were carried out. Those are the only statistics that I have.
§ Lord PLATTMy Lords, 1 am sorry to press the matter further, but with regard 5 to the noble Lord's reply about the withdrawal of this grant, may I ask whether Her Majesty's Government are aware that now it is almost impossible to dialyse anybody who is under the age of 15, which means that the parents of a boy or girl of 12, 13 or 14 may have to be told that there is just no place for their child—in other words, that he has to die? Is not this a unique occurrence in our National Health Service?
§ Lord WELLS-PESTELLMy Lords, I would not describe it as a unique occurrence. One has to face the fact that over the years the National Health Service has been faced with making decisions which have had unpleasant consequences for other people. I accept that the present situation is far from satisfactory. I accept also that decisions have to be made which are favourable to some people who need treatment but unfavourable to others, and that a decision has to be made on medical criteria, those criteria being much better known to the noble Lord than to me.
§ Baroness YOUNGMy Lords, on the second part of the Question asked by the noble Lord, Lord Platt, could the noble Lord, Lord Wells-Pestell, tell us when, as a result of sending out 6 million cards to people asking whether they would be prepared to become kidney donors, he expects to know the result of all this publicity and whether, as a result of it, he believes that more kidney donors are coming forward? My understanding is that one of the difficulties about kidney transplants is that there is space in the hospitals and that doctors are willing to perform the operation, but that not enough kidney donors are available.
§ Lord WELLS-PESTELLMy Lords, the last point made by the noble Baroness is perfectly true; that is, that there are facilities but that people are not coming forward. At present, however, the Government feel that they have done everything that is humanly possible to try to advertise this need, with a view to getting more donors. We should be very receptive—I say this quite sincerely—to suggestions from any quarter as to how we could improve the position. But this is a situation in which I agree with what has been said by the noble Baroness.