HC Deb 15 April 1930 vol 237 cc2753-5W
Dr. DAVIES

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty the number of courses provided at the Royal Naval Medical School, Greenwich; the maximum number of students which can be taught at each course; the number of entries for each course; the total cost of such courses for each of the last three years for which statistics are available; and the total amount of vaccine produced and distributed yearly during the same period?

Mr. AMMON

There would normally be two courses a year at the Royal Naval Medical School, Greenwich, for acting surgeon lieutenants, but these are at present in abeyance. There are also normally two courses a year for surgeon lieutenant commanders. The maximum number of students who can be trained at any one time at the school is 12 officers and 12 ratings. The numbers who attended courses during the period 1927–29 are as follow:

Officers:
1927 … … … … 5*
1928 … … … … 6*
1929 … … … … 7*
Ratings:
1927 … … … … 4*
1928 … … … … 1
1929 … … … … 5
* Includes one from Royal Australian Navy in each case.

When the shortage of naval medical officers is overcome, the numbers attending will approximate to the following figures annually:

Acting Surgeon-Lieutenants (two courses) … … … … 24
Surgeon Lieutenant-Commanders (two courses) … … … … 24

The approximate amounts included in the Estimates for the Royal Naval College, Greenwich, which can be attributed to the Medical School are as follow:

£
1928 … … … … 9,650
1929 … … … … 9,800
1930 … … … … 9,800
These amounts represent the cost not only of the above-mentioned courses of instruction, far which separate figures are not available, but also of a very large amount of highly technical work of the greatest importance to the health of the Navy. To enumerate some of this latter work, mention should be made of research work, analytical work of great v ariety, tropical disease investigations, special pathological examinations, etc., and lastly the very important work of vaccine making.

The total amounts of vaccine produced and distributed yearly during the last three years are as follow:

C.cs.
1927 … … … … 102,360
1928 … … … … 95,060
1929 … … … … 102,830