§ Mr. J. Morrisonasked the Minister of Health how many persons in his Department are employed in studying comparative hospital costs; how many are so employed by the regional hospital boards; what professional qualifications are looked for in recruiting such staff; how far there are arrears of work in this sphere; and what practical economies in hospital expenditure have been achieved so far by the comparative studies.
§ Mr. Iain MacLeodThe study of costs is inseparable from other aspects of hospital financial administration and no separate special staff are employed. As44W it is also a continuous process there are no arrears in the usual sense of the word. It is not possible to pick out specific economies which were originally suggested by a comparison of costs, but I am sure that this aspect of hospital administration has paid, and will continue to pay, excellent dividends.