NHS Staff (Hansard, 12 April 1988)

§ Mr. Ralph Howell
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list(a) total staff in Great Britain, full-time and part-time, for the National Health Service, (b) the number of occupied beds, (c) the waiting lists and (d) the ratio of staff to occupied beds for the years 1960, 1982 and 1987.

§ Mr. Newton
The available figures for England are given in the tables. Staffing figures for 1960 are not available on a basis consistent with those for later years.
Staff in the National Health Service cover a wide range of Health Service activities, not simply those related to hospital beds. Moreover, staff-in-post figures are a "snapshot" relating to a particular day (the main census being on 30 September), whereas numbers of occupied 89W beds are based on a daily count averaged over a full calendar year. For those reasons any ratios of staff-in-post to occupied beds would be meaningless and have not, therefore, been provided.
Over the period in question, the number of in-patient cases treated rose by over 63 per cent. from 3,931,938 in 1960 to 6,413,789 in 1987. Data on day cases are not available for 1960 but between 1982 and 1987 the number of day cases treated rose by over 48 per cent. from 706,495 to 1,050,158.
The figures for the rest of Great Britain are matters for my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.

Numbers of staff directly employed¹ by the National Health Service at 30 September: England

Numbers and whole-time equivalent²

Whole-time number Part-time WTE³ Total WTE³⁴

1982 619,500 211,000 830,600

1986 595,500 206,000 801,600

Sources: DHSS annual censuses of National Health Service medical and non-medical manpower.

¹ Includes nursing and midwifery agency staff and medical and dental locum staff.

² Figures are independently rounded to the nearest one hundred (100).

³ Includes honorary medical and dental staff.

⁴ Community Health Service locums, for whom a breakdown by nature of contract is not available, are included in the totals.

Average number of beds occupied and number of patients on the National Health Service waiting list for England at 31 December

Average number of beds occupied Number of patients on the in-patient waiting list

1960 387,229.0 437,988

1982 279,833.0 746,086

¹1986 254,597.2 676,475

National Health Service directly employed hospital and community health service staff—selected main staff groups at 30 September

Whole time equivalents¹

England 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986

Nursing and Midwifery (including agency)² 358,400 370,100 391,800 397,100 397,100 397,500 401,200 402,700

Medical and Dental (including locums)³ 39,000 40,200 41,000 41,500 42,300 42,300 43,000 43,200

Professional and Technical (excluding works)⁴ 60,100 61,900 65,200 67,200 68,700 72,700 74,300 76,100

Administrative and Clerical 103,000 105,400 108,800 108,800 110,000 110,300 111,000 111,400

Ancillary⁴ 171,900 172,000 172,200 170,500 166,200 152,200 139,400 124,300

Others⁵ 42,900 44,200 45,400 45,500 45,100 44,300 44,000 43,900

Total Directly Employed (including agency and locums) 775,300 793,800 824,400 830,600 829,400 819,300 812,900 801,600

Source: DHSS Annual censuses of National Health Service medical and non-medical manpower.

¹ Figures are independently rounded to nearest one hundred (100) whole time equivalents.

² Not adjusted for the reduction in nurses' contractual hours-from 40 to 37-5 per week during 1980/81.

³ Includes all permanent paid, honorary and locum staff.

⁴ On 1 April 1984 Operating Department Assistants transferred from Ancillary to Professional and Technical Staff Group. Figures not adjusted to take account of change.

⁵ Includes works, maintenance and ambulance staff.

National Health Service directly employed hospital staff at 30 September

Whole time equivalents¹

England 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986

Hospital Nursing and Midwifery² 319,300 330,200 347,700 351,900 350,500 350,200 352,500 354,700

Hospital Medical and Dental³ 34,700 35,800 36,600 37,100 37,800 38,800 38,600 38,800

90W
¹ Latest data available are for 1986.

§ Dr. Owen
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list for each year since 1979 the total number, and the number per occupied bed, in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, of(a) all hospital staff, (b) hospital administrators and clerks, (c) nurses, (d) hospital doctors, (e) professional and technical workers and (f) ancillary staff.

§ Mr. Newton
Such information as is available for England is shown in the tables.
Staffing figures have been given (a) for all hospital and community staff and (b) for hospital nursing and midwifery staff and medical and dental staff. (These are the only two staff groups that can be split between those working in the community and in hospitals).
Individual staff groups with the NHS cover a wide range of health service activity, not just that related to hospital bed provision. Staff-in-post figures are a "snapshot" on a particular day (the census date being 30 September), whereas occupied beds are a daily count averaged over a full calendar year.
For these reasons, and taking account of the variations in case load and patient dependency, staff-in-post/ occupied beds ratios are crude and not meaningful. Staff and occupied bed statistics are therefore shown in separate tables.
Figures for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are a matter for my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Wales and Northern Ireland.
91W
Source: DHSS (SR7) Annual censuses of NHS medical and non-medical manpower.
¹ Figures are independently rounded to the nearest one hundred (100) whole-time equivalents.
² Includes agency staff. Not adjusted for reducation in nurses' contractual hours during 1980/81 (from 40 to 37.5 hours per week). Includes permanent paid, honorary and locum staff.

§ Mrs. Gorman
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Wokingham (Mr. Redwood) on 15 December 1987,Official Report, columns 493–96, why costs incurred in respect of clerical and secretarial support employed in departments at hospitals and unit levels are considered operational rather than administrative.

§ Mr. Newton
Administrative, clerical and secretarial staff at hospital and unit level are operational in that they are an essential part of the day-to-day delivery of patient care services. They would include medical secretaries, ward clerks, interpreters and sometimes care assistants, who provide direct support to clinical staff. Administrative staff employed at regional and district headquarters are mainly concerned with the co-ordination of services between hospitals, planning and policy matters, and the maintenance of centralised services such as finance, supplies, personnel, procurement and computing.

Numbers of staff directly employed¹ by the National Health Service at 30 September: England
Numbers and whole-time equivalent²
	Whole-time number	Part-time WTE³	Total WTE³⁴
1982	619,500	211,000	830,600
1986	595,500	206,000	801,600
Sources: DHSS annual censuses of National Health Service medical and non-medical manpower.
¹ Includes nursing and midwifery agency staff and medical and dental locum staff.
² Figures are independently rounded to the nearest one hundred (100).
³ Includes honorary medical and dental staff.
⁴ Community Health Service locums, for whom a breakdown by nature of contract is not available, are included in the totals.

Average number of beds occupied and number of patients on the National Health Service waiting list for England at 31 December
	Average number of beds occupied	Number of patients on the in-patient waiting list
1960	387,229.0	437,988
1982	279,833.0	746,086
¹1986	254,597.2	676,475

National Health Service directly employed hospital and community health service staff—selected main staff groups at 30 September
	Whole time equivalents¹
England	1979	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986
Nursing and Midwifery (including agency)²	358,400	370,100	391,800	397,100	397,100	397,500	401,200	402,700
Medical and Dental (including locums)³	39,000	40,200	41,000	41,500	42,300	42,300	43,000	43,200
Professional and Technical (excluding works)⁴	60,100	61,900	65,200	67,200	68,700	72,700	74,300	76,100
Administrative and Clerical	103,000	105,400	108,800	108,800	110,000	110,300	111,000	111,400
Ancillary⁴	171,900	172,000	172,200	170,500	166,200	152,200	139,400	124,300
Others⁵	42,900	44,200	45,400	45,500	45,100	44,300	44,000	43,900
Total Directly Employed (including agency and locums)	775,300	793,800	824,400	830,600	829,400	819,300	812,900	801,600
Source: DHSS Annual censuses of National Health Service medical and non-medical manpower.
¹ Figures are independently rounded to nearest one hundred (100) whole time equivalents.
² Not adjusted for the reduction in nurses' contractual hours-from 40 to 37-5 per week during 1980/81.
³ Includes all permanent paid, honorary and locum staff.
⁴ On 1 April 1984 Operating Department Assistants transferred from Ancillary to Professional and Technical Staff Group. Figures not adjusted to take account of change.
⁵ Includes works, maintenance and ambulance staff.