Vaughan Gething: I’m very grateful to her for highlighting this particular use of Welsh Government money to deliver improvements for people in their housing and their health. We recognise, in housing, in education, and in a range of other areas, there are significant links to the health of the nation too and how they impact across each other. We always need to understand why something has been successful...
Vaughan Gething: Cancer performance at Betsi Cadwaladr University Local Health Board remains at higher levels than in other health boards in Wales. The latest figures for Betsi Cadwaladr show nearly 99 per cent of people meeting the 31-day measure and nearly 92 per cent against the 62-day measure. Cancer waiting times will, of course, remain a key priority for me.
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the question. I don’t quite share your reflection on the whole picture. As I’ve indicated, Betsi Cadwaladr do extremely well when it comes to waiting times for cancer. The challenge is, anyone who waits too long—. Even if you’re seen within time it can be an anxious process and that has a real impact on the individuals and their families. If you’re seen out of that...
Vaughan Gething: Only 15 general practices across Wales are being directly managed by local health boards. My overriding concern is that health boards ensure that the whole primary care team, of which GPs are a crucial part, deliver care that meets the needs of the population that they serve.
Vaughan Gething: I’m not at all worried about whether people are directly employed by the health board or in independent practice. The independent contractor model accounts for about 95 per cent of all general practitioners within the country. I’m interested in seeing the quality of that care improve. On what I said earlier about clusters, it’s really encouraging that GPs are taking more ownership of...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I want to begin by thanking Julie Morgan as chair, cross-party group members and all of those who’ve contributed to today’s debate. There’s been powerful testimony from all sides, not just about the injustice and unfairness, but in particular about the impact on individuals and families, whether that’s the impact on work, the ability to get...
Vaughan Gething: Indeed, Presiding Officer. I recognise it’s my responsibility to be here on time, and I do apologise to the proposer and to the Chamber for being late for the start of today’s debate. So, I apologise without hesitation, and I formally move amendment 2 in the name of Jane Hutt.
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Presiding Officer. I do welcome today’s debate, which highlights the importance of high-quality primary care services, and the opportunity to respond to some of the comments that have been made, but I’ll start by saying the Welsh Government continues to invest in primary care services across Wales, and this is in direct contrast to England. We will continue to work in...
Vaughan Gething: Our priority is to provide the people of Pembrokeshire with health services that deliver the best possible outcomes for patients. We will, of course, be guided by the best and most up-to-date clinical evidence and advice to deliver high-quality care that the people of Pembrokeshire deserve.
Vaughan Gething: I expect Hywel Dda to make the significant improvement that is required against their referral-to-treatment time targets and ensure every person is treated in a timely manner, based on clinical need.
Vaughan Gething: I expect all patients to be seen and treated in a timely manner, based on clinical need. To assist this, we have invested a further £50 million during the year to maintain performance over the winter, which will assist in reducing waiting times.
Vaughan Gething: The Welsh Government expects all local health boards to have robust systems in place to identify, manage and minimise potential risks to patients, staff, services and the organisation. This is needed to prevent harm, ensure appropriate use of resources and maintain public confidence.
Vaughan Gething: The Welsh Government has provided more than £8 million of additional funding over the last two years to support dementia services across Wales. A consultation on the first dementia strategic action plan for Wales is now open until 3 April 2017.
Vaughan Gething: We are continuing to work closely with Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Local Health Board. Support will be directed by the Welsh Government in agreement with the health board on the assistance that it requires.
Vaughan Gething: I expect health boards to ensure that people affected by a neurological condition such as multiple sclerosis to have timely access to high-quality care, integrated with social services where appropriate. This should be irrespective of where people live and how these services are delivered.
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the question. We have action in place to improve our healthcare in Wales through the eye care delivery plan, together with the planned care ophthalmology improvement plan. The HIW report underscores the need for further improvement across Wales. I expect health boards to implement the required actions to ensure better outcomes for all patients.
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the series of points and questions there. It’s worth reminding us all that there is, of course, increasing demand for eye healthcare. So, it’s part of the ability to detect more conditions, but also the success story of more of us living longer. Of course, not all waits cause harm, but some potentially do, and there’s the point about clinical need. I take a slight issue...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the comments. I think in my supplementary response to Rhun ap Iorwerth’s first two questions, I tried to set out that we recognise that we are actually saving the sight of more and more people. The challenge is that more and more people need to have the service. There are more and more people coming into our services—it’s about meeting the demand that we have. That’s why...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I want to start by saying that I do welcome the committee’s report and the range of comments that were made in today’s debate, even though I won’t agree with all of them. But I’m really pleased that the report acknowledges improvements that we have already made in planning for winter, and the continuing challenges that we still face. The committee...
Vaughan Gething: We can’t fund all of those areas to an increased level when we all know that our overall budget is reduced. And I’ll take the intervention.
