South London Hospital for Women

HC Deb 14 March 1984 vol 56 cc193-4W

Mrs. Renée Short

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) how much will be saved by closing the South London hospital for women;

(2) what alternative provision he is making for women patients of the South London women's hospital who prefer, for whatever reason including religious reasons, to be cared for by women doctors;

(3) if he will delay any further steps to close the South London hospital for women until the European Parliament has made its decision on the petition now before it;

(4) what is the cost per patient per week at the South London hospital for women and the comparable cost at alternative hospitals to which patients will be referred in future.

Mr. Kenneth Clarke

As I said in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Mitcham and Morden on 15 November 1983 at column429 the Wandsworth health authority estimates that the closure of the South London hospital for women will save approximately £5 million a year, of which about £1 million will be required to meet the additional revenue costs of reproviding the South London hospital's services at St. George's and St. James' hospitals. The balance of the savings released will be used initially to provide better facilities for the mentally ill and mentally handicapped and to offset the district's revenue shortfall and in the long term will provide resources to help meet the running costs of the new development at St. George's hospital.

The Wandsworth health authority has given an assurance that whenever possible it will continue to provide patients in the specialties of obstetrics, gynaecology, general medicine and general surgery with a choice of being seen and treated by male or female doctors in other hospitals within the district. It expects that in most, if not all, planned admissions this will be possible if requested. Inpatient facilities at the South London hospital are due to close in July when alternative facilities will be available at St. George's and St. James'. We see no reason to delay this closure.

The weekly inpatient cost in 1982–83 at the South London hospital was £677 compared with £883 at St. George's and £683 at St. James'. These are the average inpatient costs for all specialties; in comparing these figures, therefore, account must be taken of the different specialties and type of case treated at each of these hospitals. The Wandsworth health authority considers that the cost of treating patients at St. George's and St. James' for those clinical conditions currently treated at the South London hospital are approximately the same.