HC Deb 29 February 1996 vol 272 cc668-9W
Dr. Lynne Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will provide a breakdown of the numbers of psychiatric hospital beds available for(a) short-stay and (b) long-stay patients between 1987 and 1995, together with a definition of short and long-stay patients. [16782]

3. Mr. Bowis

The number of available beds in hospital and residential units for mentally ill people is shown in the table.

In addition, there are about 1,600 places in the three special hospitals at Ashworth, Broadmoor and Rampton.

Notes:

Nursing care places in residential care homes which are registered for both residential and nursing care are included in the column containing nursing homes.

Source: Department of Health RAC5, RA13A, KO36 and KH03 returns.

The breakdown requested is available only in respect of NHS mental illness beds and is shown in the table.

Average daily number of available beds/wards open 24 hours—NHS hospitals
England: mental illness
Short stay Long stay
1987–88 21,563 38,984
1988–89 22,505 39,687
1989–90 22,754 35,667
1990–91 22,427 31,942
1991–92 22,159 27,237
1992–93 21,652 24,724
1993–94 21,447 21,056
1994–95 22,101 18,644

Notes:

1. Definitions:

Short Stay (Psychiatric). An element of the component of the ward classification intensity of care (psychiatric). Facilities for the mentally ill who are intended to stay less than one year.

Long Stay (Psychiatric). An element of the component of the ward classification intensity of care (psychiatric). Facilities for the mentally ill who are intended to stay a year or more.

2. The table excludes places in special hospitals and NHS secure wards, which are not defined in these terms.

Bed availability for England, a copy of which is in the Library, contains information by individual NHS providers, ie Trusts, Directly managed Units and the Special Health Authorities, with summary tables for England. Data are collected by broad ward classification rather than by clinical specialty and returns are made on a financial year basis. The latest year for which data are available is 1994–95.

Source:

Department of Health KH03 returns.