[holding answer 16 July 2008]: Information is collected on the number of finished admission episodes to hospital. A finished admission episode is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. Admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission as part of an episode of care within the year.
Part (i) of this parliamentary question refers to “stab wounds” therefore the clinical code “X99—Assault by sharp object”, has been used. This code includes cases where someone has been attacked using a sharp object of some kind (including but not exclusive to knives).
There is another code “W26”—contact with a knife, sword or dagger. This code is used for such diagnoses as accidental knife injuries and excludes assault. Therefore code W26 has not been used in this answer.
Information is not available for 2007-08 until December 2008. For this reason, 2006-07 data has been provided instead. The following three tables provide numbers by strategic health authority and age category; provides rates (number of admissions per 100,000 of the population) per strategic health authority; and summarises national data. When interpreting the data, reference should be made to the notes and clinical codes.
Gunshot wounds*** SHA of residence Under 16 admissions 16-18 admissions Over 18 admissions Unknown age England total 181 208 925 1 Q30 North East Strategic Health Authority 14 11 46 0 Q31 North West Strategic Health Authority 50 38 190 0 Q32 Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority 21 24 93 0 Q33 East Midlands Strategic Health Authority 18 9 69 0 Q34 West Midlands Strategic Health Authority 21 28 123 0 Q35 East of England Strategic Health Authority 13 16 74 0 Q36 London Strategic Health Authority 10 38 160 1 Q37 South East Coast Strategic Health Authority 9 19 45 0 Q38 South Central Strategic Health Authority 8 9 40 0 Q39 South West Strategic Health Authority 13 14 52 0 Y Unknown 0 2 17 0 — Non-English SHA of residence 4 0 16 0
SHA of residence Under 16 admissions 16-18 admissions Over 18 admissions Unknown Age England total 179 752 4,786 3 Q30 North East Strategic Health Authority 10 36 313 0 Q31 North West Strategic Health Authority 24 142 968 0 032 Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority 19 58 498 0 Q33 East Midlands Strategic Health Authority 9 29 321 0 Q34 West Midlands Strategic Health Authority 16 93 474 0 Q35 East of England Strategic Health Authority 6 39 249 0 Q36 London Strategic Health Authority 72 252 1,071 0 Q37 South East Coast Strategic Health Authority * 21 209 0 Q38 South Central Strategic Health Authority * 29 194 1 Q39 South West Strategic Health Authority 12 25 267 0 Y Unknown 1 21 103 1 — Non-English SHA of residence 0 7 119 1
2001-02 2000-01 Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age England Total 132 508 3,973 29 130 444 3,662 13 Q01 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire HA * 15 86 — * * 108 — Q02 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire HA * 10 77 — * * 64 — Q03 Essex HA * 10 90 — * 12 77 — Q04 North West London HA 6 33 207 8 * 23 171 2 Q05 North Central London HA 9 22 198 1 11 24 173 1 Q06 North East London HA 9 42 273 — 17 46 246 — Q07 South East London HA 13 33 217 1 8 28 218 — Q08 South West London HA 7 9 122 3 * 15 81 1 Q09 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear HA 7 21 168 — * 21 152 — Q10 County Durham and Tees Valley HA 11 14 129 — * 11 97 — Q11 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire HA * * 76 3 * 9 67 — Q12 West Yorkshire HA * 24 176 — 9 19 139 — Q13 Cumbria and Lancashire HA * 22 176 — 8 13 144 — Q14 Greater Manchester HA 12 49 305 — 17 40 347 — Q15 Cheshire and Merseyside HA 9 36 261 — * 26 203 — Q16 Thames Valley HA * 14 81 — * * 85 — Q17 Hampshire and Isle of Wight HA * 10 64 — * 7 58 — Q18 Kent and Medway HA * 12 65 — * * 69 — Q19 Surrey and Sussex HA 6 15 88 3 * 12 92 2 Q20 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire HA * 9 98 — * 13 109 — Q21 South West Peninsula HA * * 59 — * 7 39 — Q22 Dorset and Somerset HA 0 * 27 — * 10 43 — Q23 South Yorkshire HA * 11 86 — * 10 108 — Q24 Trent HA * 16 160 — * 16 170 — Q25 Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland HA * 7 94 — * 6 59 — Q26 Shropshire and Staffordshire HA * * 35 — * * 39 — Q27 Birmingham and the Black Country HA 7 34 306 1 7 42 278 1 Q28 Coventry, Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire HA * 10 79 — * * 78 — S Scotland 0 0 * — 0 * * — U England—Not Otherwise Specified 0 * 53 2 0 6 52 2 W Wales * 0 10 — 0 0 10 — X Foreign (Including Isle of Man and Channel Islands) 0 * 7 — 0 * 7 — Y Not Known 0 6 94 7 * * 72 4 Z Northern Ireland 0 0 * — 0 0 * —
Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age England Total 118 437 3,549 21 88 355 3,206 18 Q01 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire HA 0 8 106 — * 7 77 — Q02 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire HA * 7 46 — * * 47 — Q03 Essex HA * 13 86 — 0 10 64 — Q04 North West London HA * 25 157 4 * 17 146 0 Q05 North Central London HA 8 31 150 2 * 15 124 4 Q06 North East London HA 7 27 199 3 * 25 172 — Q07 South East London HA 8 31 171 — * 11 154 2 Q08 South West London HA * 10 76 1 * 8 74 — Q09 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear HA * 24 149 — * 14 142 — Q10 County Durham and Tees Valley HA * 11 103 — * 12 92 1 Q11 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire HA * * 77 — 6 13 91 — Q12 West Yorkshire HA 8 15 149 — * 16 134 — Q13 Cumbria and Lancashire HA * 12 143 — * 11 131 — Q14 Greater Manchester HA 16 54 422 — 14 35 347 2 Q15 Cheshire and Merseyside HA 6 25 208 — 8 22 205 1 Q16 Thames Valley HA 0 15 91 — 0 8 74 1 Q17 Hampshire and Isle of Wight HA 0 6 58 — * 7 75 — Q18 Kent and Medway HA * 8 56 1 * * 52 — Q19 Surrey and Sussex HA * * 101 — * 6 67 — Q20 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire HA * 9 112 — * 9 110 — Q21 South West Peninsula HA * 7 48 — * 7 54 — Q22 Dorset and Somerset HA 0 6 37 — * * 47 — Q23 South Yorkshire HA * 7 98 — * 12 80 — Q24 Trent HA 9 13 155 1 * 20 111 — Q25 Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland HA * 9 56 — * 8 89 — Q26 Shropshire and Staffordshire HA * * 51 — * * 46 — Q27 Birmingham and the Black Country HA 6 34 253 1 * 30 239 1 Q28 Coventry, Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire HA * 7 70 — * * 68 — S Scotland 0 * * — 0 * * — U England—Not Otherwise Specified 0 0 0 — 0 0 0 — W Wales 0 * 20 4 0 0 18 3 X Foreign (Including Isle of Man and Channel Islands) * * * — * * 9 — Y Not Known 0 * 91 4 * 10 65 3 Z Northern Ireland 0 0 0 — 0 0 * —
Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age England Total 112 422 3,283 58 114 416 3,360 52 Q01 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire HA * 10 99 — * 11 89 — Q02 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire HA * 8 61 — * 14 69 1 Q03 Essex HA 0 * 85 — 0 6 69 — Q04 North West London HA * 29 198 — * 9 172 4 Q05 North Central London HA * 14 129 — * 16 130 2 Q06 North East London HA * 22 187 2 10 28 228 — Q07 South East London HA 7 22 151 2 8 28 158 1 Q08 South West London HA 6 12 79 — * 19 107 — Q09 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear HA * 12 127 — 7 17 143 — Q10 County Durham and Tees Valley HA 8 17 82 — 6 13 107 — Q11 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire HA * * 32 — 0 8 36 — Q12 West Yorkshire HA 8 18 142 — 7 12 139 — Q13 Cumbria and Lancashire HA 7 17 133 — * 10 110 — Q14 Greater Manchester HA 14 48 382 — 17 50 358 — Q15 Cheshire and Merseyside HA * 28 194 — * 20 242 1 Q16 Thames Valley HA * 8 87 — * 15 68 — Q17 Hampshire and Isle of Wight HA * 9 50 — * * 41 — Q18 Kent and Medway HA * 6 61 — 0 * 56 — Q19 Surrey and Sussex HA * 11 105 1 * 9 122 — Q20 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire HA * 9 84 — * 14 109 — Q21 South West Peninsula HA * 14 62 — 0 10 52 — Q22 Dorset and Somerset HA * * 32 — * 6 33 — Q23 South Yorkshire HA * 9 82 — * 7 72 — Q24 Trent HA 6 13 106 — * 18 126 — Q25 Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland HA * 9 74 — 0 8 60 — Q26 Shropshire and Staffordshire HA 0 6 45 — 0 * 38 — Q27 Birmingham and the Black Country HA * 33 233 1 18 39 270 — Q28 Coventry, Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire HA * 10 75 1 * 6 70 — S Scotland 0 0 * — 0 0 * — U England—Not Otherwise Specified 0 * 21 1 0 * 16 4 W Wales * * 13 — 0 * 6 — X Foreign (Including Isle of Man and Channel Islands) 0 0 * — 0 * * — Y Not Known 0 14 65 50 * * 59 39 Z Northern Ireland 0 * * — 0 0 0 —
2001-02 2000-01 Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age England Total 321 206 890 3 287 192 641 2 Q01 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire HA 12 * 26 — 6 * 19 — Q02 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire HA * * 15 — 6 8 12 — Q03 Essex HA 6 6 13 — 7 * 16 — Q04 North West London HA * * 27 — * — 28 — Q05 North Central London HA * 7 41 — * * 21 — Q06 North East London HA 6 * 51 — 12 * 32 — Q07 South East London HA 9 * 44 — * * 40 — Q08 South West London HA * * 17 — * — 12 — Q09 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear HA 9 14 24 — 24 12 16 — Q10 County Durham and Tees Valley HA 18 * 15 — 14 6 * — Q11 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire HA 13 9 24 1 10 10 20 — Q12 West Yorkshire HA 16 21 64 — 18 14 35 — Q13 Cumbria and Lancashire HA 16 15 32 — 14 11 37 — Q14 Greater Manchester HA 35 26 62 — 33 22 54 1 Q15 Cheshire and Merseyside HA 27 14 56 — 15 11 43 — Q16 Thames Valley HA 8 7 21 — 9 * 25 — Q17 Hampshire and Isle of Wight HA 8 24 — * * 19 — Q18 Kent and Medway HA 13 9 25 — 9 * 14 — Q19 Surrey and Sussex HA 9 * 28 1 6 * 16 — Q20 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire HA 13 * 32 — 11 * 16 — Q21 South West Peninsula HA 8 * 13 — 9 * 15 — Q22 Dorset and Somerset HA 11 * 17 — 6 * * — Q23 South Yorkshire HA 21 10 30 — 18 9 21 — Q24 Trent HA 17 11 41 — 14 10 22 — Q25 Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland HA * * 19 — * 7 18 — Q26 Shropshire and Staffordshire HA 11 * 13 — 9 6 14 — Q27 Birmingham and the Black Country HA 15 10 61 — 15 10 37 — Q28 Coventry, Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire HA * * 16 — * * 16 — S Scotland — — * — — — — — U England—Not Otherwise Specified — * 7 — — — 0 — W Wales * — * — * — * — X Foreign (Including Isle of Man and Channel Islands) — — 10 — * * * — Y Not Known * * 17 1 * * 6 1 Z Northern Ireland — — — — — — — —
Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age England Total 362 189 618 1 279 158 548 2 Q01 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire HA 10 7 28 — 13 * 32 — Q02 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire HA 11 * 12 — * * 9 — Q03 Essex HA 12 * 21 — 8 * 19 — Q04 North West London HA * — 24 1 — * 15 1 Q05 North Central London HA * * 16 — * * 8 — Q06 North East London HA 13 6 22 — * * 22 — Q07 South East London HA 7 * 26 — * * 34 — Q08 South West London HA * * 16 — * * 7 1 Q09 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear HA 12 6 31 — 18 11 22 — Q10 County Durham and Tees Valley HA 7 9 12 — 15 8 12 — Q11 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire HA 9 * 15 — 7 8 17 — Q12 West Yorkshire HA 18 8 37 — 22 14 18 — Q13 Cumbria and Lancashire HA 22 13 17 — 12 10 22 — Q14 Greater Manchester HA 50 22 74 — 23 18 55 — Q15 Cheshire and Merseyside HA 33 10 31 — 29 10 33 — Q16 Thames Valley HA 14 7 16 — * * 16 — Q17 Hampshire and Isle of Wight HA 11 * 16 — 9 — 14 — Q18 Kent and Medway HA * 6 * — 6 * 12 — Q19 Surrey and Sussex HA 9 * 13 — 12 * 23 — Q20 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire HA 14 * 23 — * 8 14 — Q21 South West Peninsula HA 12 * 14 — 10 * 11 — Q22 Dorset and Somerset HA * * * — 6 * 12 — Q23 South Yorkshire HA 15 10 17 — 16 * 18 — Q24 Trent HA 20 9 37 — 18 8 37 — Q25 Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland HA 9 * 14 — * * 15 — Q26 Shropshire and Staffordshire HA 8 13 16 — 10 6 12 — Q27 Birmingham and the Black Country HA 16 9 34 — 8 * 18 — Q28 Coventry, Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire HA 8 * 13 — 8 * 11 — S Scotland — — — — — — * — U England—Not Otherwise Specified — — — — — — — — W Wales * * * — — * * — X Foreign (Including Isle of Man and Channel Islands) * — * — — — * — Y Not Known * * * 0 — * * — Z Northern Ireland — — * — — — * —
Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age Under 16 16 to 18 Over 18 Unknown age England Total 260 146 579 9 333 168 572 11 Q01 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire HA 8 6 17 — 9 * 24 — Q02 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire HA * * 8 — 7 * 13 — Q03 Essex HA * * 16 — 9 6 16 — Q04 North West London HA * 6 24 — 6 * 17 — Q05 North Central London HA * * 17 — * * 12 — Q06 North East London HA * * 20 — * * 19 — Q07 South East London HA 8 * 32 — * 8 37 — Q08 South West London HA * * 14 — * — 21 — Q09 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear HA 17 9 15 — 29 6 30 — Q10 County Durham and Tees Valley HA 8 * 19 — 19 * 11 — Q11 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire HA 7 * * — * * 6 — Q12 West Yorkshire HA 21 10 26 — 18 7 32 — Q13 Cumbria and Lancashire HA 17 14 22 — 20 7 20 — Q14 Greater Manchester HA 24 20 53 — 34 23 51 — Q15 Cheshire and Merseyside HA 14 6 38 — 17 12 47 — Q16 Thames Valley HA * * 18 — 9 * 14 — Q17 Hampshire and Isle of Wight HA 8 * 15 — 9 * 10 — Q18 Kent and Medway HA * * 18 — 8 * 15 — Q19 Surrey and Sussex HA * * 24 — 11 6 19 — Q20 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire HA 7 * 22 — 6 9 14 — Q21 South West Peninsula HA 9 6 10 — 10 * 6 — Q22 Dorset and Somerset HA * * 10 — 9 * 6 — Q23 South Yorkshire HA 11 6 * — 13 11 17 — Q24 Trent HA 12 12 30 — 23 8 22 — Q25 Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland HA 9 * 18 — * * 17 — Q26 Shropshire and Staffordshire HA 12 * 17 — 13 * 8 — Q27 Birmingham and the Black Country HA 17 — 33 — 17 12 23 — Q28 Coventry, Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire HA * * 9 — 8 * 23 — S Scotland — — — — — — — — U England—Not Otherwise Specified — — * — — * * — W Wales * — * — 6 * * — X Foreign (Including Isle of Man and Channel Islands) — — * — — — — — Y Not Known * — 16 9 * * 13 11 Z Northern Ireland — — — — — — — — Notes: * The technical term for what has been supplied is finished admission episodes. Assignment of Episodes to Years Years are assigned by the end of the first period of care in a patient’s hospital stay. Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. Admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. Cause code—stab wounds** and gunshot wounds*** The cause code is a supplementary code that indicates the nature of any external cause of injury, poisoning or other adverse effects. Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) has used the following ICD-10 external cause codes when referring to gunshot wounds and knife-related injuries. ** Stab wounds: X99.—Assault by sharp object *** Gunshot wounds: W32.—Handgun discharge W33.—Rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge W34.—Discharge from other and unspecified firearms X72.—Intentional self-harm by handgun discharge X73.—Intentional self-harm by rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge X74.—Intentional self-harm by other and unspecified firearm discharge X93.—Assault by handgun discharge X94.—Assault by rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge X95.—Assault by other and unspecified firearm discharge Y22.—Handgun discharge, undetermined intent Y23.—Rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge, undetermined intent Y24.—Other and unspecified firearm discharge, undetermined intent Y35.0 Legal intervention involving firearm discharge Y36.4 War operations involving firearm discharge and other forms of conventional warfare Data Quality HES are compiled from data sent by over 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain. Assessing growth through time HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. During the years that these records have been collected, the NHS there have seen ongoing improvements in quality and coverage. These improvements in information submitted by the NHS have been particularly marked in the earlier years and need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. Changes in NHS practice also need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. For example, a number of procedures may now be undertaken in out-patient settings and may no longer be accounted in the HES data. This may account for any reductions in activity over time. Ungrossed Data Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (i.e. the data are ungrossed). Low Numbers Due to reasons of confidentiality, figures between 1 and 5 have been suppressed and replaced with “*” (an asterisk). PCT and SHA Data Quality PCT and SHA data was added to historic data-years in the HES database using 2002-03 boundaries, as a one-off exercise in 2004. The quality of the data on PCT of Treatment and SHA of Treatment is poor in 1996-97, 1997-98 and 1998-99, with over a third of all finished episodes having missing values in these years. Data quality of PCT of general practitioner (GP) practice and SHA of GP practice in 1997-98 and 1998-99 is also poor, with a high proportion missing values where practices changed or ceased to exist. There is less change in completeness of the residence-based fields over time, where the majority of unknown values are due to missing postcodes on birth episodes. Users of time series analysis including these years need to be aware of these issues in their interpretation of the data. Source: HES, The NHS Information Centre for health and social care.