The commitment in the health strategy to provide an additional 3,000 acute hospital beds was based on the analysis in my Department's national review of acute hospital bed capacity. That report identified a need for 2,840 inpatient beds and 190 day beds. Inpatient beds are essentially overnight beds in which patients are cared for before or following treatment.
The definition of a day bed has evolved in the past number of years. Advances in technology and treatment have altered the way in which day care is provided. In practice, care during day treatment can be provided safely in a variety of appropriate locations such as a bed, recliner or couch. The hospital inpatient inquiry system, HIPE, which records activity in acute hospitals, recently defined a day bed as follows: a day-bed or day-place is the bed, trolley, reclining chair or couch, located in a dedicated, named day-ward-unit, allocated to patients who are admitted as a result of their condition. It is used to allow the patient to rest, recline or recover in the course of an elective day-case admission. Since publication of the health strategy in December 2001, funding has been provided for hospitals to open an additional 900 acute hospital beds. This includes 700 beds announced in 2002 and 200 beds being provided as part of the commissioning of new units. While the majority of these beds are traditional inpatient beds, approximately 20% of the additional capacity are day places.
