§ Mrs. Renée Shortasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how much has been paid by health authorities in the West Midlands region to send patients for treatment at private hospitals; how many patients were sent by each authority; what treatment or urgent or non-urgent operations they were sent for; and by how much this reduced waiting lists in National Health Service hospitals in those areas in each of the last five years.
§ Mr. HayhoeI regret that all the information that the hon. Member is requesting is not collected centrally. Table A sets out the total expenditure under contractual arrangements for patient care in the west midlands since the 1980–81 financial year. This information is not directly comparable with the activity figures in tables B and C which are for calendar years. If the hon. Member requires further information she may like to write to the chairmen of individual district health authorities who may be able to help.
67WNotes:
1. The figures are derived from the annual accounts of area health authorities and their successor district health authorities and represent total revenue expenditure on all contractual arrangements for patient care incurred under hospital and community health services. The accounts give no detailed analysis of this expenditure.
2. The accounts of the West Midlands Regional Health Authority show no expenditure of this type.
Table B Discharges and deaths of in-patients receiving treatment under contractual arrangements with institutions outside the National Health Service. West Midlands Regional Health Authority District health authority *1980 *1981 1982 1983 1984 (provisional) Bromsgrove and Redditch 15 5 3 10 21 Herefordshire — — — Kidderminster and District 3 3 — Worcester and District — 2 6 Shropshire 73 64 55 74 44 Mid Staffordshire 201 217 25 62 55 North Staffordshire 230 291 273 South East Staffordshire — 66 114 Rugby 918 1,117 — — — North Warwickshire† — 1,432 1,724 South Warwickshire† 1,057 161 170 Central Birmingham 19 — — — — East Birmingham 15 24 20 North Birmingham — — — South Birmingham 14 6 — West Birmingham — — — Coventry — — — 156 166 Dudley 21 10 62 56 93 Sandwell 13 16 16 33 50 Solihull — — — — — Walsall 11 19 22 35 27 Wolverhampton — 11 108 106 125 Regional Total 1,271 1,459 1,610 2,517 2,888 * For 1980 and 1981 the figures relate to Area Health Authorities.
† Responsibility for contractual arrangements with the Warwickshire Orthopaedic hospital (St. Gerards) was transferred from South Warwickshire to North Warwickshire DHA in 1983.
Table C Number of new out-patients receiving treatment under contractual arrangements with institutions outside the National Health Service. West Midlands Regional Health Authority. District health authority *1980 *1981 1982 1983 †1984 Bromsgrove and Redditch — — — — — Herefordshire — — — Kidderminster and District — — — Worcester and District — — — Shropshire — — — — — Mid Staffordshire — — — — — North Staffordshire — — — South East Staffordshire — — — Rugby 2,352 2,285 — — — North Warwickshire — 584 1,012 South Warwickshire 2,383 1,513 732 Central Birmingham — — — — — East Birmingham — — — North Birmingham — — — South Birmingham — — — West Birmingham — — — Coventry — — — — — Dudley — — — — — Sandwell — — — — — Solihull — — — — — Walsall — — — — — Wolverhampton — — — 2 — Regional total 2,352 2,285 2,383 2,099 1,744 * For 1980 and 1981 the figures relate to Area Health Authorities.
† Provisional.