§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is satisfied that the definition of mental impairment in the Mental Health (Amendment) Bill conforms with the World Health Organisation definitions in the international classification of impairments, disabilities and handicaps; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeYes. The term was taken from that organisation's international classification of impairments, disabilities and handicaps and is defined in the Bill
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Number of Patients on In-Patient Waiting List at 30 September 1981 Walsall area health authority Urgent Non-Urgent Specialty All cases Cases on list for more than one month All cases Cases on list for more than one year Total of all cases General Medicine Paediatrics Chest Diseases Dermatology Neurology Cardiology Rehabilitation Genito Urinary Medicine Rheumatology Geriatrics 72 37 72 Younger Disabled General Surgery 5 1,229 707 1,234 ENT 5 3 1,168 774 1,173 Trau & Orth 3 252 55 255 Ophthalmology 12 2 12 Radiotherapy Urology Plastic Surgery Thoracic Surgery Oral Surgery 74 6 74 Orthodontics Neurosurgery So as to provide for the very small group of mentally handicapped people for whom it is generally agreed that powers of detention may be needed.
§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what action he has taken to promote the World Health Organisation definitions in the international classification of impairments, disabilities and handicaps.
§ Mr. RossiWhile the classification provides an extremely useful framework for the discussion of disablement, further work has to be done before it could be used as a basis for collecting statistics. The Department's research liaison groups are encouraging researchers to explore ways in which the classification system can be used in their work. It has been described in an article in "Health Trends", which is published by the Department and circulated, among others, to every doctor under contract to the NHS. And the international seminar on the prevention of disablement, sponsored by the Department last November, included a presentation by Dr. Philip Wood which took account of the classification.