§ 56. Mr. Goldingasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many vacancies there are for nurses at the North Staffordshire hospitals; and how many beds are unstaffed.
§ Mr. AlisonThese hospitals have no approved nurse staffing establishments against which numbers of vacancies could be assessed. Their nurse staffing levels are at present limited only by the number of nurses—in particular trained nurses —who can be recruited. The number of beds available at any time is conditioned, not only by the staffing levels, but also by the effect of maintenance and capital works.