§ Mr. David RuffleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate he has made of the number of delayed discharge patients awaiting a domiciliary care package in Suffolk on the latest date for which figures are available; [143526]
(2) what percentage of delayed discharge patients in (a) England and (b) Suffolk West had been waiting over 28 days for a transfer of care on (i) 1 September 2003 and (ii) 1 September 2002. [143644]
§ Dr. LadymanThere were nine patients in Suffolk who were delayed in hospital awaiting a domiciliary care package in their own homes at the beginning of December 2003.
In September 2003 in England, 26.3 per cent. of patients who experienced a delayed transfer of care from hospital for a period of 28 days or over, and in Suffolk West Primary Care Trust the figure was 38.89 per cent. This compares to 34.2 per cent. in England and 46.4 per cent. in Suffolk West PCT in September 2002.