Mr. Anthony D. WrightTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the performance of health authorities in Great Yarmouth in meeting out-patient access targets since 1997. [186714]
§ Dr. LadymanNorfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire Strategic Health Authority's (which covers the health economies of Great Yarmouth) performance on meeting out-patient access targets are shown in the table. The figures for 1997 are not available.
Number of people waiting for out-patient treatment; over 13 and over 17 weeks
March: Over 13 weeks Over 17 weeks 1998 17,859 n/a 1999 21,517 n/a 2000 19,183 n/a 2001 15,429 n/a 2002 10,797 n/a 2003 5,366 1,685 2004 2,556 0 Notes: 1. Data prior to September 2001 have been converted to match current strategic health authority boundaries. 2. Target: achieve a maximum wait of four months (17 weeks) for an out-patient appointment and reduce the number of over 13-week out-patient waiters by March 2004, as progress towards achieving a maximum wait of three months for an out-patient appointment by March 2005. Source: Care and health information portfolio factsheet.