§ Mrs. Dunwoodyasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people are currently awaiting hospital treatment for arthritis in each regional health authority.
§ Mr. John PattenInformation is not available in the form requested because waiting list figures are collected by specialties and not by diagnostic groups. On 30 September 1982, the latest date for which complete regional figures are available, the numbers of persons in each regional health authority awaiting admission to the specialties of rheumatology and of traumatice and orthopaedic surgery, in which most hospital treatments for arthritis are carried out, are shown in the following table:
362W
Hospital waiting list figures for Rheumatology and Traumatic and Orthopaedic Surgery by region on 30 September 1982. Numbers awaiting admission to the specialty of Region Traumatic and Orthopaedic Surgery Rheumatology Northern 7,910 100 Yorkshire 7,523 128 Trent 17,106 123 East Anglia 6,858 75 North West Thames 8,415 79
Numbers awaiting admission to the specialty of Region Traumatic and Orthopaedic Surgery Rheumatology North East Thames 13,261 135 South East Thames 11,914 87 South West Thames 7,487 56 Wessex 10,495 249 Oxford 6,938 205 South Western 7,989 75 West Midlands 16,807 224 Mersey 7,763 12 North Western 11,241 260 Special Health Authorities and Boards of Governors 641 14 England, Total 142,348 1,822