§ Dr. StarkeyTo ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 19 October 1998,Official Report, columns 975–76, for what reasons health authorities in England are unable to report average time taken for patients to receive results of cervical smear tests: and how methods of data collection on waiting times for cervical smear tests in English health authorities differ from those in (a) Wales, (b) Scotland and (c) Northern Ireland. [57869]
§ Mr. HuttonNone of the four health departments routinely collect information about the length of time women wait for the results of their cervical smear tests. However, information on the length of time laboratories take to read smear tests was collected centrally in England until March 1997.
As the Welsh Office have only five health authorities, and Northern Ireland Office only four health boards, both Departments were able to collect information about waiting times for smear results on an ad hoc basis. The Scottish Office were also able to contact each of their 11 health boards, but provided information only on reporting times. As there are over 100 health authorities in England the information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Information about waiting times for results will be included as part of the current review of data collection on the cervical screening programme.