§ Mr. MaginnisTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what factors underlay the delays in treatment at the orthopaedics unit at the Royal Victoria Hospital in December; and what was the average time taken to treat patients with fractures(a) on 21 December and (b) on 11 January. [65950]
§ Mr. McFall[holding answer 18 January 1999]: The recent upsurge in the number of fracture patients treated at the Royal Victoria Hospital must be seen in the context of a 100 per cent. increase in the fractures treated in the 2 central Belfast Hospitals in the last 10 years. Additional pressures created by a surge in emergency admissions before Christmas and the general effects of the cold weather exacerbated the problems.
On 21 December, 6 patients were treated for fractures in the Royal Victoria Hospital. The average time waited by these patients was 4.6 days. On 11 January, 5 fracture patients were treated in the Royal with an average waiting time of 5 days.
I am determined to ensure that patients admitted to hospital with fractures receive the treatment that they require as soon as possible and certainly no later than the 2 days laid down by current clinical standards and I have taken appropriate steps to achieve this.