§ Mr. Brocklebank-Fowlerasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if he will publish in the Official Report a list showing the number of private beds available, the number of DHSS beds available, the number of beds indicated by population (DHSS norms) and the planned bed provision for 1982 for the hospital service in the King's Lynn district showing the provision for the following categories: acute, obstetrics, special care babies, geriatrics, aged mentally infirm, mental illness, mental handicap, general practitioner and pre-convalescent;
(2) why he has proposed in the consultation paper issued by the Norfolk Area Health Authority that beds provided for general practitioners in the King's Lynn district during 1977 should be reduced from 146 to 68 in the planned bed provision for 1982.
§ Mr. MoyleThe existing and planned National Health Service bed provision for the district for 1982 has recently been published by the Norfolk Area Health Authority in its consultative document of proposals for hospital services in the King's Lynn Health District and is as follows:
Pre-Convalescent etc." the number of general practitioner beds is 18. The authority has no proposals to reduce the number of general practitioner beds below the present 18. The majority of the remaining beds are pre-convalescent, and I understand that when the new hospital is commissioned most of these will not be required.
§ Mr. Brocklebank-Fowlerasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if he is aware of the urgent shortage of 855W general practitioner beds in the King's Lynn district and the particular shortage of beds for orthopaedic surgery; and if he will take steps to alleviate the problem;
(2) if he is aware that certain orthopaedic conditions requiring operation have led to waiting lists of up to five years for patients suffering extreme discomfort and pain; and if he will take steps to accelerate the provision of hospital beds for general practitioner orthopaedic patients in the King's Lynn district.
§ Mr. MoyleI understand from the Norfolk Area Health Authority that it is aware of a need for an increase of general practitioner beds in the King's Lynn health district. It is for the Norfolk Area Health Authority to decide what priority to give to particular health service locally. At present the King's Lynn health district has a total of 40 beds for orthopaedic purposes, and when the new district general hospital comes into use the number of orthopaedic beds in the District will increase to 68.
I understand that as at March 1977, the latest period for which figures are at present readily available, the number of patients awaiting admission from the orthopaedic waiting for in-patient treatment in King's Lynn District General Hospital was 212; of this number 16 patients described as non-urgent had waited more than 12 months. I understand that no urgent orthopaedic case has to wait more than one month for admission to King's Lynn Hospital.