G • General Statistics and Legal Aspects
CHAPTER 38
GENERAL STATISTICS
Since the opening of the Stoke Mandeville Centre, over 5,000 paraplegics and tetra-
plegics have been admitted as in-patients by 1972. A previous statistic of the development
of the Spinal Unit as a National Centre since 1951 when Stoke Mandeville Hospital was
taken over by the National Health Service is shown in Table 36 which gives the turn
over of the patients from 1952-64 (Guttmann, 1967). As mentioned before, the majority
of patients are admitted by road, but in recent years transport by helicopter, especially
of cervical injuries and those associated with other injuries, has steadily increased, and
since January 1971-31 May 1972 36 patients were admitted by helicopter. Moreover,
traumatic paraplegics and tetraplegics, in particular service personnel of the British
Forces, have been transferred by plane within 48 hours of injury from as far afield as
Germany, Aden and Singapore. The importance of immediate admission of acute
spinal injuries to a Spinal Centre cannot be overstressed.
As shown in Table 36 the total turnover increased from 670 in 1952 to 2,780 in 1964.
The yearly new admissions, due both to injuries and other causes, increased during the
same period from 107 to 256, most of them being traumatic lesions. Readmissions
increased from 198 in 1951-52 to 682 in 1963-64. In the following years until 1968-69
the new admissions varied between 228 and 269 but decreased between 1969 to 1971
varying between 168 and 203, as two of our wards had to be closed because of shortage
of nursing staff. This closure of two wards inevitably resulted in delay of new admissions
and, in particular, of early re-admission of former patients in need of specialized treat
ment. Accordingly the readmissions for routine check-ups and specialized treatment
has fallen in this period, varying between 522 and 615. This shortage of nursing staff
has, indeed, become a national and international problem for many hospitals in this
country and abroad.
Of special interest is the development of the out-patient service from 63 in 1951-52
to 884 in 1963-64. This includes former in-patients for routine check-ups and patients
sent for assessment from other hospitals and doctors. It may be noted that, while the
number of new admissions and re-admissions decreased between 1968-69 and 1971-72,
the number of out-patient attendances increased in that period from 1,092 to 1,408. The
total turnover in that period varied between 2,817 and 2,865.
At the bottom of the columns of discharges in the statistic (Table 36), the number
of deaths is given occurring every year, varying between 5 in 1952 and 21 in 1963-64.
The number of deaths between the period of 1968-69 and 1971-72 varied between 13
and 21 (average 15).
625
