Vaughan Gething: In South Wales Central, the University Hospital of Wales is the only site. Across NHS Wales there are three hospital sites that have external contracts in place until 2018 and that charge for parking. Parking at all other sites is free of charge to patients, staff, and visitors.
Vaughan Gething: Yes, we’ve been absolutely upfront that those charges will end at the end of the contract. Look, I think there are two different issues, though, with respect, that I think may be slightly being confused, Presiding Officer. One is charges for car parking spaces, and the other is parking on site. There has been an issue at the Heath about parking on site. It’s helpful for all Members to...
Vaughan Gething: We recognise the significant role clinical trials can play in improving health outcomes. We invest more than £21 million in NHS Wales through Health and Care Research Wales to increase opportunities for people to participate in research. Additionally the Healthwise Wales initiative allows everyone over 16 to take part in research.
Vaughan Gething: I expect all patients to be seen in a timely manner based on clinical need. I expect the health board to continue to work closely with the planned care programme to develop a sustainable service.
Vaughan Gething: The changes to women’s and children’s services made by Hywel Dda university health board in 2014 have resulted in better patient outcomes and improved compliance with standards. This was confirmed by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health’s independent review of maternity, neonatal and paediatric services in west Wales which concluded that it would make no clinical sense to...
Vaughan Gething: Changes to the GP contract for 2017-18 have been agreed with British Medical Association Wales which will see an investment of £27 million in general medical services. During 2017-18 we will be working with the BMA to modernise the contract.
Vaughan Gething: The consultant contract has operated in Wales since 2003. There is widespread agreement that the UK medical contracts are in need of modernisation and we will need to consider how medical contracts could best support the future needs of the NHS in Wales.
Vaughan Gething: The Sport Wales Vision document launched in 2011 highlighted how Sport Wales aimed at promoting a culture change in sport which would better deliver on our sport and physical activity agenda. Progress continues, participation rates in sport especially amongst young people are increasing and we are achieving success at elite level.
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I’m happy to move the motion on the paper and to have the opportunity to have this debate on a significant public health challenge for Wales, and to set out our progress in improving the quality of care, as well as to restate our expectation and ambition for further improvement. I’ll briefly speak to the amendments. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I want to thank all Members who took part in today’s debate. I will just run through some of the comments that have been made, in particular, and quite understandably, Rhun ap Iorwerth’s contribution. I want to deal with some of the points about structured education, because I do recognise the need for improvement—the need to have a proper audit...
Vaughan Gething: Well, I reckon lots of those things do take place, particularly in primary schools, but also in secondary schools, too. There’s a challenge again about how we normalise it and also that normalisation not just being something that is confined to a school. It isn’t solely the responsibility of education professionals to get children and young people to be physically active and physically...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the question. I have discussed the framework for the study with both Public Health Wales and the Terrence Higgins Trust, as well as officials within the Welsh Government. I issued a Welsh Government statement following a meeting that took place yesterday with both Public Health Wales and the Terrence Higgins Trust. I do welcome the support from the Terrence Higgins Trust to help...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for that series of questions. I think you’re right in terms of awareness raising, to start off with, that there is a real challenge in continuing the message about the reality of HIV and reducing the number of people with HIV in Wales. We still have people every year who contract HIV in Wales, so there’s a real need to improve our ability to reduce the numbers of people who have...
Vaughan Gething: Well, I’m happy to confirm my response. That’s exactly what Jeremy Miles has called for, it’s exactly what the Terrence Higgins Trust has called for, and it’s part of what the study will be looking at. It won’t just be PrEP in an isolated way—it’s seeing it in its context, as part of the work that we want to do to try and ensure that as many people as possible do not acquire...
Vaughan Gething: As the Member, and other Assembly Members, will be aware, I established an independent panel to oversee the HASCAS—that’s the Health and Social Care Advisory Service—investigation and the Donna Ockenden review into the care of patients on Tawel Fan. Whether the quality of care provided could have been a contributing factor to the death of some patients will, of course, be what we’re...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for that series of slightly different questions, and I’ll try to answer them in the different parts in which they were put. I want to start by saying that, of course, I understand the significant and continuing public interest and concern into the events reported around Tawel Fan, and it’s been actually very difficult to meet the understandable demand for the process to be...
Vaughan Gething: On Professor Purt, we were completely clear about the secondment arrangement for him to leave the health service in Wales. He is now no longer part of the service. We are absolutely transparent about the arrangement for him to leave, including the financial measures that took place with that. In terms of your comment that members of Betsi Cadwaladr health board have not been paid a single...
Vaughan Gething: I think it’s difficult to understand how the matters raised directly relate to the investigation that’s being undertaken. You raise matters that are historic, going back to 2009, as you indicate, and others. I’m not aware of how the independent HASCAS investigation has actually resolved all those issues, because that’s the whole point about being independent. It’s not for me to set...
Vaughan Gething: I’m happy to respond to the middle point first in terms of what will happen. In terms of what will happen, we need to see what the report says first, to then understand what an appropriate response is, what response the health board should undertake and are there points for the Government to respond to as well. I’m robustly confident there will be questions as a result of the report when...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I’d like to thank Members for tabling a debate on this topic, as it allows me to reiterate the continuing commitment of this Welsh Labour-led Welsh Government to the principle of a national health service that is publicly funded and free at the point of delivery. We agree with the movers of the motion. In fact, the 2009 reforms in Wales reaffirmed Nye...
