The Statistical Service announces that it has published the annual report “Health and Hospital Statistics” for the year 1999.

The Report provides statistical information relating to the medical services of the public sector. It provides, inter alia, data on in-patients, surgical operations, out-patient attendances, bed occupancy rates, information on medical, nursing and paramedical personnel, various health indicators etc.

The main developments which were recorded in 1999 compared to 1998 are:

• During 1999 54.457 patients were admitted for treatment and discharged from the general hospitals, compared with 53.536 in 1998, recording an increase of 1.7%.
   
  The disease category, “Injury, poisonings and certain other consequences of external causes” have the highest share 16,2% of in-patients, followed by diseases of the digestive system with 11,4%, diseases of the respiratory system with 10,5% and diseases of the circulatory system with 10,0%.
   
• Surgical operations performed on in-patients recorded an increase of 1.3% over the previous year and reached 20.467.
  
  Operations on the digestive system accounted for 21,3% of all operations performed on in-patients, operations on the musculoskeletal system 16.7%, on female genital organs 15,5%, on eyes 9,8% and operations on nose, mouth and pharynx 8,5%.
   
• Out-patient attendances decreased by 0,5% over the previous year, reaching 1.332.957, of which 31,9% represented attendances at rural hospitals and rural health centers.
  
  Diseases of the circulatory system with 29,2% and diseases of the respiratory system with 13,8% were the main disease categories diagnosed in out-patients.
   
• During 1999 a total of 306.033 patients visited the Casualty Department of the general hospitals, recording an increase of 1,9% over the previous year.
   
• Expenditure of health services during 1999 is estimated at C£275,0 mn of which C£92,8 mn represent expenditure of the public sector and C£182,2 mn of the private sector. The share of expenditure on health as a percent to G.N.P. increased from 4,1% in 1990 to 5,6% in 1999.

On the basis of available data for the public and private sector, the following health indicators were calculated for 1999:

357 persons per doctor, compared with 368 in 1998 and 483 in 1990.

208 persons per nurse, compared with 213 in 1998 and 234 in 1990.

216 persons per hospital bed, compared with 215 in 1998 and 170 in 1990.

Expectation of life at birth for the period 1998-1999 was 75,3 years for men and 80,4 year for women.

The Report is available from the Government Printing Office in Nicosia at the price of C£8,00.