§ Mr. Brayasked the Secretary of State or Social Services what is his estimate of the number of professional audiologists currently in private practice who will be put out of business as a consequence of his decision to issue behind-the-ear hearing aids through the National Health Service.
§ Mr. AlisonI can make no estimate of this nature but I expect that there will continue to be considerable scope for private practice to flourish.
§ Mr. Brayasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many professional audiologists currently in private practice will be offered contractual employment in the NHS by his Department as a consequence of his decision to issue behind-the-ear hearing aids through the National Health Service.
§ Mr. AlisonThere are no plans for offering professional audiologists currently in private practice contractual employment in the National Health Service. I am sure that National Health Service authorities will be glad to recruit any dispensers whose qualifications match those required for National Health Service
140Wemployment as agreed by the Whitley Council.
§ Mr. Brayasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the number of professionally qualified audiologists currently employed by his Department; and to what extent this number will be increased to accommodate the additional task of supplying behind-the-ear hearing aids by the National Health Service.
§ Mr. AlisonAt 30th September 1972, the latest date for which figures are available, the number of physiological measurement technicians (audiology) inclusive of training grades employed by hospital authorities in the National Health Service in Great Britain was 376 in whole-time equivalent terms. The planned introduction over a five-year period of a head-worn hearing aid for adults is estimated to call for about a doubling of the present numbers of technical staff.