§ Mr. Grovesasked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that at the outbreak of war there were 70 patients waiting to be admitted to Essex County Sanatoria, and that since the war the figure has increased, and patients kept waiting two or three months; how many patients, both male and female, are at present waiting; what steps are taken to prevent the disease being spread by these patients; how many patients discharged themselves from Essex County Sanatoria in 1940 before treatment was completed; and what steps are being taken to ensure an adequate number of beds in the county in future?
§ Mr. E. BrownI am aware that a period of waiting may be necessary before individual patients can be admitted to a sanatorium, and that the number of patients waiting varies considerably from time to time. I am informed that at present 114 persons in all are on the waiting list. In many cases immediate admission is not required, but for those in which it is desirable every effort is made to secure sanatorium treatment as soon as possible. The spread of the disease is controlled by the normal measures of supervision in the patient's home and by giving priority in admission to those whose segregation is desirable. I am aware that a certain number of patients discharge themselves from county sanatoria against medical advice before completion of the necessary sanatorium treatment, but I have no information as to the numbers concerned in 1940. With regard to the provision of accommodation, an additional institution of 300 beds has been brought into use since the outbreak of war.