CARDIAC SURGERY IN THE NHS

That this House welcomes the findings highlighted by the European Association forCardio-Thoracic Surgeons and the Society of Cardiothoracic Surgeons that NHS heart surgery patients in England and Wales have a greater chance of survival and recovery than almost anywhere else in Europe; notes evidence showing that cardiac surgery patients have a mortality rate that is 25 per cent. lower than the European average; further notes that hospital stays for coronary heart bypass surgery in England and Wales are around 10 per cent. shorter than the European average, resulting in a 6.4 million saving for the NHS; and congratulates cardiac surgeons and their teams across the NHS on the findings that cardiac surgery in the NHS consistently delivers above average results.