§ Mr. McCartneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many nursing and para-medical staff in Northern Ireland are qualified in forensic psychiatry and working in(a) high security units and (b) admission wards in psychiatric hospitals mental health trusts.
§ Mr. AncramThere are no high security units or mental health trusts in Northern Ireland.
§ Mr. McCartneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many forensic psychiatric patients have been treated in Northern Ireland in each year since 1985.
§ Mr. AncramThis information is not available.
§ Mr. McCartneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many doctors are trained each year in forensic psychiatry; and how many qualified in forensic psychiatry are practising in the NHS in Northern Ireland.
§ Mr. AncramDuring the period of higher specialist training, every junior doctor in psychiatry gets some training in forensic psychiatry and most undertake a six month period of training specifically in the sub-speciality. This enables all consultants to deal with routine forensic psychiatric cases which they may encounter in their day-to-day practice.
There is one consultant forensic psychiatrist currently working 70 per cent. of his time in the Prison Service and 30 per cent. in one of the health and social services boards. A second consultant forensic psychiatrist will be working 50 per cent. in the Prison Service and 50 per cent. in another health and social services board.
The intention is that each board will have a pool of knowledge so that all psychiatric patients who come before the courts will have access to forensic psychiatry.