§ Mr. CabornTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many deaths on arrival were delivered by the police, armed services and voluntary organisations in December 1989 for each of the health authorities operating in south Yorkshire; and what was the cause of death;
(2) how many deaths on arrival were delivered to the health authorities operating in south Yorkshire in December 1987 and December 1988.
§ Mrs. Virginia Bottomley[holding answer 15 January 1990]: The number of deaths on arrival recorded at south Yorkshire hospitals during December 1987, 1988 and 1989 were as follows: 1987, 1988 and 1989 were as follows:
1987 1988 1989 Barnsley health authority1 32 30 34 Doncaster health authority 54 53 74 Rotherham health authority 15 28 26 Sheffield health authority 49 33 67 1The figures do not distinguish between deaths on arrival at the accident and emergency department and bodies delivered to the public mortuary at the Barnsley district general hospital.
Details of cause of death could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
706WThese figures do not provide any sensible statistical basis for drawing any conclusions at all about the effect of the industrial action by the ambulance trades unions upon patients. The number of deaths on arrival at a hospital can fluctuate widely in normal circumstances depending on the range of cases in a particular month and if there has been any temporary increase in illness locally, for example, as a result of a flu epidemic. As further illustration there were 60 cases of deaths on arrival at Sheffield hospitals and 21 at Rotherham hospitals in December 1985.