§ Mr. Ieuan Wyn JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will list the number of professionally qualified people in post in each health authority area in Wales, and the number of vacancies that exist within the same disciplines, as(a) speech therapists, (b) occupational therapists and (c) physiotherapists;
(2) what steps are being taken to improve training facilities for speech therapists, occupational therapists and physiotherapists in Wales.
§ Mr. Peter WalkerI refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply which I gave to the hon. Member for Alyn and Dceside (Mr. Jones) on 21 October at columns1015–16, which gives the information requested in respect of physiotherapists and speech therapists. Information on the number of occupational therapists in post in each Welsh district health authority as at 30 September is given in the following table. As indicated in my earlier reply information on the number of vacancies is not currently collected by the Department on a regular basis, but information obtained in the course of the 1988 manpower resource planning exercise indicated that at the all-Wales level at 30 September 1988 there were about 75 (whole-time equivalent) vacancies for occupational therapists. This aggregate figure is approximate only; reliable information at individual district health authority level is not currently available.
Following the results of the 1988 manpower resource planning exercise, consideration is being given to how training provision for speech therapy and occupational therapy may be improved in Wales. The need for improved training capacity for physiotherapy will be assessed in the light of the 1989 round of manpower resource plans. 698W
Occupational therapists Staff in post (whole-time equivalents) as at 30 September 1988 Whole-time equivalents Clwyd 31.9 East Dyfed 12.8 Gwent 37.3 Gwynedd 15.2 Mid Glamorgan 35.5 Pembrokeshire 8.3 Powys 6.6 South Glamorgan 74.2 West Glamorgan 29.0 All Wales 250.8