§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list in the Official Report the paediatric consultant availability (a) in maternity units and (b) in reasonably close proximity to maternity units for each area health authority; if he will indicate any shortfall; and if he will make a statement.
§ Dr. Vaughan[pursuant to his reply, 25 March 1981, c. 365]: The Department does not collect information on consultant staffing below regional level. However, we are not aware of any area health authority which does not have consultant paediatric cover for all consultant obstetric units, although this would not necessarily extend to general practitioner maternity units which are some distance away. The following table shows, for each regional health authority (RHA) on 30 September 1980, the whole time equivalent of consultant staff in post in paediatrics and paediatric neurology; the whole time equivalent of vacant posts; and the establishment whole time equivalent of posts per 100,000 population.
RHA Consultants in Post Posts vacant Posts per 100,000 population Northern 36.1 1.0 5.56 Yorkshire 35.9 2.0 4.86 Trent 38.9 3.0 4.27 East Anglia 16.1 — 4.03 North West Thames 30.0 0.5 4.40 North East Thames 26.2 2.3 3.70 South East Thames 36.7 1.0 5.24 South West Thames 22.4 0.6 4.07 Wessex 21.1 — 3.77 Oxford 21.2 3.0 4.66 South Western 21.2 1.0 3.40 West Midlands 50.4 5.0 4.83 Mersey 22.2 1.0 4.22 North Western 44.6 5.0 5.65 All figures are whole time equivalents