§ Mr. WigleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many pain relief consultants there are within national health service hospitals in Wales.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettCurrently there are two consultants in Wales in the specialty of palliative medicine. Pain relief work is also carried out by many anaesthetists, but information on the amount of time devoted to pain relief by those consultants is not available centrally. However, the majority of district general hospitals in Wales have a specialist interested in the relief of chronic pain.
§ Mr. WigleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will facilitate the establishment of a pain relief clinic in Gwynedd; and what discussions he has had with the Gwynedd health authority on this matter.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettA pain relief clinic is already available at Ysbyty Gwynedd.
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§ Mr. WigleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what statistics relating to pain relief are collected by the Welsh Office from national health service hospitals in Wales; what proposals he has to improve the available analysis of such statistics; and if he will ensure that the activity of pain clinics is incorporated in hospital activity analysis in Wales.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettThe Welsh Office collects quarterly information relating to hospital bed use and out-patient activity by specialty. This information is published annually in "Hospital Bed Use Statistics", copies of which are in the Library of the House. Between January 1979 and March 1989 information relating to pain relief was collected and published as above. For the financial year 1989–90 pain relief work undertaken by palliative medicine consultants and anaesthetists was not separately identifiable from their other work. Since 1 April 1990, however, data on pain relief work done under both specialties have been collected as a separate category and will be included in published data for 1990–91 later this year.
The hospital activity analysis system relates only to patients admitted to hospital and as such does not include the activity of out-patient pain clinics.
§ Mr. WigleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what equipment is available in NHS hospitals in Wales for the relief of pain, including self-administered pain relief equipment; and what plans he has for extending such availability.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettThis information is not available centrally. It is for local health authority managements to determine the availability of equipment in the light of local needs and circumstances, having regard to available resources.