§ Mr. Peter Emeryasked the Minister of Health what estimate he has made of the number of doctors necessary to fulfil the recommendations of the Gillie Report.
§ Mr. BarberThe general tenor of the Report is being taken into account in reviewing future medical manpower requirements, but its recommendations are not in terms appropriate for an estimate such as my hon. Friend suggests.
§ Mr. Peter Emeryasked the Minister of Health what advice he has given to hospital management committees in order to extend the open prescribing by general practitioners, as already exists in the X-ray and pathological departments, to all treatment given by hospitals when the general practitioner believes that it is unnecessary to have the opinion of a consultant.
§ Mr. BarberHospital authorities have been asked to study the references in the Gillie Report to the help which the hospital service can give to the family doctor, but the Report draws a distinction between diagnostic services to which general practitioners might reasonably have direct access and therapeutic procedures, usually involving repeated visits to hospital, which should be under the supervision of hospital medical staff.