§ Tim LoughtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cancelled operations there were in the last two years in each hospital trust in England. [7606]
§ Mr. Hutton[holding answer 15 October 2001]: I apologise to the hon. Member for the delay in responding to this question. I refer the hon. Member to the reply that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State gave my hon. Friend the Member for Blackpool, North and Fleetwood (Mrs. Humble) on 5 March 2002, Official Report, column 192W.
Data on the number of operations cancelled at the last minute are placed in the Library. Data on the number of last minute cancelled operations by national health service trust were not collected until April 2001, prior to this, data were collected on last minute cancelled operations within each health authority.
A cancellation is counted as 'last minute' when the operation is cancelled on, or after, the day the patient is due to be admitted to hospital, for non-medical reasons.
§ Tim LoughtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what his definition is of operations cancelled for non-clinical reasons. [42306]
§ Mr. HuttonOperations cancelled for non-clinical reasons include any operation cancelled by the hospital except where the patient is not medically fit for surgery or where surgery would no longer be medically appropriate at the scheduled time.