§ Mr. Barry JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will state the number of patients waiting for non-urgent in-patient treatment waiting(a) more than one year, (b) more than 18 months and (c) 24 months or more, in Wales as a whole and by health authority in 1979. 1987 and the present.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettInformation concerning patients waiting for non-urgent in-patient treatment in Wales is collected centrally only on the basis of those waiting more than one year and became available for the first time in 1981. The available information is given in the following table:
Non-urgent cases waiting more than one year for admission as an in-patient as at 31 March District health authority 1981 1987 1991 Clwyd 701 533 1,091 East Dyfed 49 363 939 Gwent 1,665 1,825 2,567 Gwynedd 422 175 719 Mid Glamorgan 3,386 2,761 2,306 Pembrokeshire 653 1,328 634 Powys — — — South Glamorgan 2,501 1,696 1,884 West Glamorgan 749 458 1,882 Wales 10,126 9,139 12,022 In March 1974 there was a total of 72,904 patients on hospital waiting lists in Wales; by March 1979 the figure had risen to 97,359 an increase of 24,455.
447WThe number of patients treated in 1974, 1979 and 1990 was:
1974 1979 1990–91 In-patient 328,793 349,695 482,445 New out-patient 444,032 428,739 551,464 The overall percentage increase/decrease in number of patients treated is as follows:
1974–79 Per cent. 1979–90 to 1991 Per cent. In-patients Up 6 Up 38 New Out-patients Down 3 Up 29 The latest information for 1990 also shows that 92 per cent. of patients admitted from a waiting list in that year had waited less than 12 months.
§ Mr. Barry JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he plans to meet(a) health authorities, (b) county health councils and (c) leaders of the health service unions to discuss waiting lists.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettMy right hon. Friend is to meet the chairmen of Welsh health authorities on 20 November when waiting lists and the length of time patients have to wait for treatment will be discussed. He has no plans at present to meet community health councils or leaders of health service unions. I am always happy to receive constructive comments in writing at any time.