Mr. John D. TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many(a) hip replacements, (b) pacemaker operations and (c) cataract operations were carried out in Great Britain and Northern Ireland respectively in the last year; and what was the average waiting time for each operation in both Great Britain and Northern Ireland. [33823]
§ Mr. BowisThe information for 1993–94 is shown in the table: 823W
Finished Consultant Episodes Great Britain Northern Ireland Number of operations Average waiting time (days)1 Number of operations Average waiting time (days)1 (a) Hip replacement and other arthroplasty of the hip2 67,571 192 1,660 184 (b) Pacemaker sytem operations2 18,939 27 418 —3 (c) Cataract and other eye lens operations2 152,355 193 3,766 292 Notes: 1 Waiting list and booked admission cases, excluding emergency admissions. 2 Operation procedure codes (a) W37-W39 and W46-W48, (b) K60 and K61, (c) C71, C72, C74 and C75. 335 per cent. of these cases were either emergencies or did not have a recorded decision to admit date. Any calculation of average waiting time for this operation would therefore be unreliable. Sources:
Estimates from, for England, Hospital Episode Statistics; for Scotland, SMR1; for Wales, Welsh Office Health Statistics; and for Northern Ireland, Hospital Inpatient System.