§ 32. Mr. Andrew Bowdenasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what percentage of hospital beds in the South-East Thames region are occupied by patients of pensionable age.
§ Mr. WhitneyI am sorry I cannot give my hon. Friend the information in precisely the form he seeks. Figures readily available centrally are for patients aged 65 and over. During 1984, the latest year for which information 381W is available centrally, in-patients in this age group occupied, on average, an estimated 55 per cent. of all occupied beds in the South-East Thames regional health authority.