§ Tom Cox:To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the hospitals in the Greater London area which use mixed-sex wards. [177826]
§ Mr. Hutton:The information is not available in the format requested. The Department does not collect information on the number of either single sex or mixed sex wards in use in national health service hospitals.
Guidance issued to NHS trusts on the achievement of the Department's single sex accommodation objectives made it clear that a variety of ward layouts and designs can be used to deliver separate sleeping accommodation, including the use of single sex wards, or combinations of single sex bays and individual rooms. Single sex bays, together with increasing numbers of single rooms, are common features of modern hospital design both here and abroad and can provide acceptable levels of privacy and dignity.