§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many abortions were carried out at the Falloden private hospital, Leeds, during(a) 1995 and (b) 1996. [21799]
§ Ms JowellA total of 693 abortions undertaken at the Fallodon Private Surgical Hospital were notified to the Chief Medical Officer between 1 January 1995 and 28 November 1995. On 29 November 1995, the hospital closed following withdrawal of registration under the Registered Homes Act and withdrawal of approval to carry out abortions by the then Secretary of State.
§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps have been taken to establish the number of female patients who did not receive a full dosage of anti-D immunoglobulin during terminations undertaken at the Falloden private hospital, Leeds; what the implications of this are for the patients concerned; what steps have been taken to warn them of the potential risks they face and provide appropriate screening; and if he will make a statement. [21800]
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§ Mr. BoatengIt is currently the responsibility of health authorities and general practitioner fundholders to assess the health care needs of their population, and to secure a range of hospital and community health services, including chiropody services, to meet those needs. Most health authorities give priority to meeting the chiropody needs of older people, those with "at risk" conditions for example diabetes, and certain other groups such as children, pregnant women, and people with learning disabilities.
Information about contacts with community chiropody services by age group is collected annually on Department of Health return KT23 and is published each year. Copies are available in the Library. In 1996–97, 63 per cent. of initial contacts with the chiropody service were with patients aged 65 and over.
§ Angela SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the age profile of NHS chiropody and podiatry patients for(a) 1996–97, (b) 1995–96 and (c) 1994–95; and what proportion of initial contacts made by NHS chiropody and podiatry patients were self-referred in these years. [22552]
§ Mr. BoatengThe age profile of National Health Service chiropody and podiatry patients as defined by initial contacts in the last three years is as follows:
§ Ms JowellWhen the Department became aware that some women had received less than the recommended dose of anti-D immunoglobulin, at the Fallodon Private Surgical Hospital, expert medical advice was sought on the medical consequences. That advice was that it would not be possible to identify any woman who may have been affected unless and until they became pregnant again.
Establishing the number of female patients who did not receive the full dose of anti-D would not therefore guide future care, nor offer benefit to the women concerned, and might cause needless anxiety. Any attempt to contact these women indirectly, for example via their general practitioner, would have run the risk of breaching patient confidentiality.
A woman's blood group is routinely tested as part of her ante-natal care. If she is found to be Rhesus negative she would be monitored to see whether she develops Anti-D antibodies. Action necessary to protect the baby would be determined by the results of this monitoring.