To ask the Minister of Health to detail the number of dietitians currently in (i) full-time; (ii) part-time; and (iii) job share posts at the regional service based at Belfast City Hospital for patients diagnosed with oesophageal and gastric cancer.

Information provided by the Health and Social Care (HSC) Trusts on the number of dietitians currently employed on a full-time, part-time and job share basis, for patients diagnosed with oesophageal and gastric cancer, is detailed in the table below.

HSC Dietitians Employed (Headcount) for Oesophageal & Gastric Cancer Patients, by HSC Trust & Work Pattern

Source: Information & Analysis Directorate, DoH

~ Dietitians see both cancer and non-cancer patients requiring Upper Gastrointestinal surgery.

* Core/ general community dietetic staff also manage some gastric/ oesophageal patients but there is no dedicated funding for this.

# Patients with a diagnosis of oesophageal and gastric cancer are referred into and seen by Core Dietetic Services across their patient journey. There is no specific Dietetic staffing resource identified solely for oesophageal and gastric cancers.

^ Dietitians provide input to patients that have been diagnosed with oesophageal and gastric cancer. This work is only a proportion of each job plan, as dietitians provide a service to a larger cohort of patients with cancer and palliative conditions.