Health Care Accommodation in Scotland

Abstract

The Medical and Nursing Advisers of the Scottish Health Service, Common Services Agency, Building Division, advise upon the planning of health care accommodation. The overall spread of beds by function is given in a review of existing health care buildings in the year 1981. The numbers of hospital beds and of various groups of staff in the hospital and community services are calculated per 100,000 population so that any unusual disparity can be ascertained. One of the parameters for health building planning is fiscal control and so the cost per hospital in-patient week is tabulated for eight groups of specialities.

The appropriate responsibilities of the Regional Councils in Scotland in 1979 are considered along with the responsibilities of Health Boards because part of each Social Work Department's work is the provision of accommodation and social care for those in need as opposed to the National Health Service responsibility for the health care of those in hospital and in the community. An overall view of residential accommodation for those requiring medical treatment or social care is presented in tabular form. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the Common Services Agency.