§ Mr. David EvansTo ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many junior doctors and dentists by region in England are contracted for more than 72 hours a week in on-call posts; and if she will make a statement.
§ Mr. MaloneAt 30 September 1994, the returns from the 14 English regional task forces on junior doctors' hours were as follows:
Region Hard-Pressed posts contracted for over 72 hours a week Northern 242 Yorkshire 653.5 Trent 184 East Anglian 170.5 NW Thames 315 NE Thames 492 SE Thames 213 SW Thames 206 Wessex 110 Oxford 140 South Western 46 West Midlands 293 Mersey 194 North Western 615 Total 3,874 This represents a fall of over 40 per cent. in the number of posts in this category since March.
I am very pleased with this significant increase in the rate at which these posts are being eliminated. This is evidence of the hard work done by regional task forces and by hospitals in tackling the problem of long hours.
412WThere are, however, still too many posts where junior doctors are being asked to work long hours and the Government will continue to work with the medical profession and NHS managers to ensure that the "New Deal on Junior Doctors' Hours", a copy of which is in the Library, is implemented in full.