§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services why patients on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis do not receive assistance with their telephone bills when they cease using home haemodialysis; what information he has as to the extent to which this may affect a patient's decision as to which treatment to choose; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Geoffrey FinsbergHealth authorities have been advised by the Department that they should pay for the installation and rental of a telephone where one is not already available in the home of a patient on home
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Number of babies weighing 2,500 grams or less and numbers expressed as a percentage of total births in each RHA in the years 1978, 1979, 1980, and 1981 1978 1979 1980 1981 Regional Health Authority Number per cent Number per cent Number per cent Number per cent Northern 2,716 7.0 2,736 6.6 2,921 7.0 2,860 7.1 Yorkshire 3,371 7.6 3,768 8.1 3,812 7.9 3,543 7.6 Trent 3,945 7.2 4,261 7.3 4,498 7.5 4,174 7.1 East Anglia 1,423 6.4 1,593 6.7 1,643 6.6 1,482 6.2 N.W. Thames 3,182 7.1 3,567 7.5 3,613 7.5 * — N.E. Thames 3,442 7.3 3,585 7.1 3,956 7.6 * — S.E. Thames 2,954 7.0 3,267 7.3 3,273 7.1 3,091 6.9 S.W. Thames 2,090 6.0 2,337 6.3 2,177 5.8 2,332 6.3 Wessex 2,106 6.8 2,379 7.2 2,360 6.9 2,272 6.8 Oxford 1,983 6.6 2,080 6.5 2,209 6.6 1,908 6.0 S. Western 2,147 6.3 2,312 6.4 2,400 6.4 2,341 6.5 W. Midlands 4,991 7.7 5,594 8.1 5,680 7.9 5,373 7.9 Mersey 1,873 6.2 2,127 6.5 2,372 7.3 2,220 7.0 N. Western 3,950 7.8 4,242 7.9 4,559 8.2 4,381 8.2 * Not yet available haemodialysis. This is in case an emergency requiring immediate medical help arises in the dialysis process. Where treatment is by continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis emergencies of this kind are unlikely to occur, but authorities have discretion to meet telephone costs if there are special medical factors. I have no information about whether this has affected the preferences expressed by patients for different forms of treatment.