§ Mr. Menzies CampbellTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library the outcome of his Department's work referred to on page 5 of its paper "Defence Medical Services: A Strategy for the Future" under the heading "Numbers for the Future". [139702]
§ Dr. Moonie[holding answer 22 November 2000]: As a result of the work referred to on page 4 of "Defence Medical Services: A Strategy for the Future" the Department has found that personnel requirement for the Defence Medical Services, resulting from work initiated by the Strategic Defence Review, currently stands at 8,543. This requirement can be broken down into the main categories as follows: Doctors—1,250; Dentists—304; Nurses—2.010; Medical Support Officers—344; Technicians—1,266; and Medical Assistants/Combat Medical Technicians—3,369. These figures include those required for command and staff posts and the manning and training margins.
Further analysis of potential casualty rates in different operational circumstances, and of resulting demands on medical resources, is a continuing task and may result in detailed adjustments to the assessed personnel requirements of the Defence Medical Services.