§ Dr. MarekTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to reduce the need for patients from Wales to travel long distances to England for medical treatment; what effect the White Paper proposals will have on this travelling; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. GristPatterns of patient referral for treatment or diagnosis are only in part related to the location of the relevant services. Clinical and patient choice also influence such decisions. In the case of some specialised procedures, notably those designated as regional or supraregional services, the catchment population is necessarily so large or the availability of the specialist expertise so limited that only a small number of centres have been established. Although some of these are in Wales, where they are not it is desirable to refer Welsh patients to centres in England, in the same way as patients in England are sometimes referred to Wales.
The Welsh Office keeps under review the access which Welsh patients have to specialist health care services. As a result in-patient services are being expanded to improve patient access. Examples include renal dialysis, radio-therapy and oncology in south Wales, medical genetics, bone marrow transplantation and cardiac services. A report on the future development of radiotherapy and oncology services for patients in north Wales is expected shortly.
The arrangements for the management of regional services in Wales following the publication of the White Paper "Working for Patients" will be decided in consultation with district health authorities, within the Department's policy of developing in Wales as full a range of health services as is consistent with the clinical viability of the units concerned.