§ Mr. LansleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS finished consultant episodes were recorded by hospital episode statistics in England in each year since 1979. [168907]
§ Mr. HuttonThe Department holds finished consultant episode statistics recorded by hospital episode statistics for financial years back to 1989–90. For years prior to 1989–90, there is no comparable data collected centrally. The information available is shown in the table.
Hospital Episode Statistics, finished consultant episodes (FCEs)1 NHS hospitals in England, 1989–90 to 2002–03
Financial year Finished consultant episodes 1989–90 10,321,556 1990–91 10,228,485 1991–92 9,919,020 1992–93 10,364,186 1993–94 10,597,979 1994–95 11,373,067 1995–96 11,041,554 1996–97 11,098,998 1997–98 11,601,203 1998–99 12,108,141 1999–2000 12,290,278 2000–01 12,476,470 2001–02 12,338,590 2002–03 12,756,260 1 A FCE is defined as a period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Please note that the figures do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the year. The figures in the table include both in-patient and day cases. Note: Figures are grossed for coverage, except for 2001–02 and 2002–03, which are not yet adjusted for shortfalls. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Department of Health.