§ Dr. GodmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is(a) the total waiting list, (b) the longest time any patient had to wait and (c) the numbers waiting by number of months' wait for the ear, nose and throat department at the Inverclyde royal hospital over the last four years for which figures are available.
§ Mr. Michael Forsyth[holding answer 25 January 1990]The information available is set out in the tables:
(a) In-patient waiting list at 31 March. Year Numbers on Waiting List 1986 358 1987 462 1988 1253 1989 1245
(b) Waiting time for those discharged during the year. Year Longest Waiting time (Months) Mean Waiting time (Months)2 1985 46.5 3.4 1986 36.8 2.8 1987 54.4 3.4 1988 55.5 3.4 507W
(c) Number of people on the waiting list by time spent on the waiting list at 31 March3 1988 Number 1989 Number under 3 months 104 141 3 and under 6 months 50 33 6 and under 9 months 38 16 9 and under 12 months 25 26
1988 Number
1989 Number
12 months and over 36 29 Total 253 245 1 The altered statistical system on which these figures are collected is explained in ISD Statistical Bulletin 1/88. 2 The figures in this column relate to admissions while those at Vol. 149 No. 68 6137 of the official report were confined to operations. 3 The altered statistical system on which these figures are collected is explained in ISD Statistical Bulletin 1/88. The information is not available for earlier years.