§ Mr. Dormandasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what proposals he has for training schemes for all levels of employment in the health education services; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. AlisonThe encouragement and promotion of training in health education, both for those who specialise in health education and for others to whose work such training is relevant, is one of the responsibilities of the Health Education Council. The various professions involved and the local authorities also have responsibilities in this field.
The council is taking steps to improve arrangements generally for health education training, particularly in the light of the proposed reorganisation of the National Health Service. It directly organises courses, seminars and conferences for a wide variety of professions and grades of officers. It has been closely involved in the setting up of pilot courses in the method and practice of teaching for field workers in health education and of part-time courses designed to improve the general skills and knowledge of existing health educators.
At postgraduate level the council is financing the development of training in health education for a master's degree at the Department of Community Medicine at the new medical school at Nottingham University and is supporting postgraduate training at diploma level in the Institute of Education at Leeds University.
§ Mr. Dormandasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will state the number of health education officers employed by local authorities in each of the last six years.
§ Mr. AlisonThe number of full-time health education officers employed by local authorities has increased from 443W about 70 in 1966 to about 200 in 1971. There arc no reliable figures available for the intervening years, nor for the number of staff involved in health education on a part-time basis.