§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the distribution of consultant ophthalmologists in the National Health Service regions; and if he will give the figures in terms of numbers and whole time equivalents per million of population.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeThe information requested is set out in the table below:
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Consultant Ophthalmologists in post at 30 September 1982 Numbers Whole-time equivalent Whole-time equivalent per million population† England total without duplication (including London Postgraduate Teaching Hospitals)* 382 353.0 7.6 England sum of Regions (including London Postgraduate Teaching Hospitals) 418 353.0 7.6 Northern RHA 28 25.2 8.1 Yorkshire RHA 32 29.2 8.1 Trent RHA 27 26.5 5.8 East Anglian RHA 19 18.8 9.8 North West Thames RHA 31 20.3 5.9 North East Thames RHA 29 19.8 5.2 South East Thames RHA 40 31.9 8.9 South West Thames RHA 26 18.7 6.2 Wessex RHA 25 23.8 8.6 Oxford RHA 16 14.6 5.9 South Western RHA 27 26.4 8.6 West Midlands RHA 35 33.7 6.5 Mersey RHA 17 14.8 6.1 North Western RHA 31 28.2 7.0 London Postgraduate Teaching Hospitals 35 25.0 — * Some doctors hold appointments with more than one region and will be counted in both. Hence the difference between the England total and the sum of the regional figures, when these are expressed in simple numbers. † Based on the latest available provisional estimates of populations for Summer 1982.