Vaughan Gething: There are a number of different steps we're taking. You'll have heard the First Minister describe this earlier. It's not a simple or straightforward matter, because the normal waiting list initiatives, the way we'd have worked, we'd have been able to get through more in, if you like, standard NHS time, as well as running additional sessions. That's less likely to be possible in the same way....
Vaughan Gething: Thank you. I have issued NHS Wales COVID-19 operating frameworks for quarter 1 of this financial year, and more recently quarter 2. These provide guidance on the actions to be taken across the health and social care system, and build towards returning to the delivery of a wider range of services.
Vaughan Gething: Well, I can say we're already looking at this year's flu programme and, in particular, at procuring extra stocks of the flu vaccine. There is work going on across Wales on extending eligibility for the NHS flu programme. I want to have a much higher uptake of both staff who work with vulnerable people as well as those people who qualify for an NHS flu jab to actually take up that entitlement....
Vaughan Gething: There are two points to make there: the first is that, yes, we look at international surveillance, what happens in other countries as they reach their winter. It's part of the challenges around Melbourne, but it's also part, for example, of a concern we have about South America as they're approaching their winter and, in particular, the challenges of overcrowded housing and people who are...
Vaughan Gething: [Inaudible.]—cancer information, and I can give the Member the assurance that the decision I made to both introduce and trial the single cancer pathway is going to be the path forward when we restart new performance measures in the future, as we progressively restart more forms of NHS activity. I have already decided that we will not be reporting the old measures. I think it would be...
Vaughan Gething: I think there are three points that I'd make in response to those. The final one is to do with the point about GPs being informed. It should be available as part of the patient record; it should be available to general practice. And if the Member has individual instances that he's aware of within his constituency, then I'd be very pleased to see those to make sure the system is working as it...
Vaughan Gething: I don't think it is a factually accurate conclusion to reach that the Government and our partners did not prioritise the social care sector in terms of the amount of support we've provided, both in extra cash support on an emergency basis, and the further amount of support that we're looking to find at a hard-pushed time as well. We've also provided significant amounts of personal protective...
Vaughan Gething: Well, as you'll recall from listening to the First Minister earlier, we continue to talk with the UK Government to try to make sure that social care workers in Wales receive the full £500. I do not think that it would be a good day for HMRC if they picked the pocket of poorly paid workers in the social care sector, and we will look to exhaust all of the avenues of discussion before making...
Vaughan Gething: I'll deal with the last point first. When it comes to improving testing turnaround, it's a real concern of myself and the Government and the health service. We have an improvement programme in place identifying areas to make a practical difference to the operational delivery to speed up testing turnaround times. There's already action in place in terms of courier services and more action...
Vaughan Gething: Ordinarily, Llywydd, questions from Janet Finch-Saunders are for the deputy, but I think it's clear today this is for me. When it comes to the interim report that I still want to have published before we go into recess, it plainly won't be going into the level of individual detail that the Member questions. What we will do, though, is we'll want to try to understand what has happened, both in...
Vaughan Gething: Well, obviously, as the Member knows, I'm not in a position to comment on the individual concerns that he raises, and I'm sure he'll be raising those with the treating health board. It's a matter of fact, not opinion, that we're restarting NHS services and that urgent cancer care has always been available. However, there will have been times when operational matters, such as people isolating...
Vaughan Gething: Well, the First Minister and I have acknowledged, not just today but on regular occasions, the concern we have for the significant backlog that is being created in NHS demand and need. We've talked at various points—in fact, at early stages during the pandemic—about the concern over some people opting not to come in for treatment. One of the earliest points that I made was the fall-off in...
Vaughan Gething: I am of course aware that COVID-19 has had a real impact on non-COVID-19 care in north Wales and across the whole country, and patients are waiting for appointments and treatment. However, as well as hospitals postponing appointments, as we discussed earlier I am aware that during the pandemic some patients have elected to defer their appointments. Progressively introducing more NHS activity...
Vaughan Gething: I thank the Member for the question. Of course, we want to see health and social care workers able to continue to work during the summer, and I recognise that childcare arrangements are part of it. It would be helpful for me if the Member would provide the example she's provided today in some more detail to me. I'd be delighted to receive some correspondence between yourself to myself and the...
Vaughan Gething: Thank you for the question. It's an important matter about cross-border care, both for those who come into Wales, in particular in primary care, but also some hospital treatment that takes place as a regular, normal part of NHS treatment for Welsh residents in English hospitals. It's particularly the case for Powys and for Betsi Cadwaladr where elements of care are regularly commissioned, and...
Vaughan Gething: Well, I think there are a couple of important points from the variety of comments. Obviously, I don't agree with every single comment the Member's made, but when it comes to cancer services, we've already made clear that urgent cancer services were always available during the pandemic, even when other parts of the NHS were closed down, following my decision on 13 March. So, we are looking to...
Vaughan Gething: It is impossible to say when NHS Wales could operate as it did before the COVID-19 pandemic. None of us can say with certainty when the pandemic will end. We will, though, as I have stated previously, adapt NHS practice to take account of innovation and improvement during the pandemic.
Vaughan Gething: Our COVID-19 operating framework focus remains on access to essential NHS services, with the introduction of routine services continuing to be a matter for local determination based on an assessment of safety, workforce, capacity, clinical support requirements and risks for patients.
Vaughan Gething: Yes, I'm well aware that there's a further 2 Sisters plant within your constituency. It's been part of our conversations with the trade union side officials, and part of the reason why it's important for me to have a conversation with the sector, including, of course, employers. So, it will be myself and Lesley Griffiths, with her ministerial responsibilities, engaging in that work. It builds...
Vaughan Gething: On the second point I don't think there is a conflict, because there's the point there about the people who are directly running and delivering that service thinking about the adjustments they need to make for those assessments to continue, and that's actually something that, to be fair to the local government family, they've managed throughout the period of the pandemic. And there's more of...
