3. Will the First Minister make a statement on the condition of GP facilities in north Wales? OAQ(5)0089(FM)[W]

Over the past 10 years, a number of new primary care facilities have been opened across north Wales. Of course, they provide buildings of the highest quality for GPs.

There is a critical situation in my constituency, in the Waunfawr surgery, and I’d like to draw your attention to the terrible problems that exist there and ask you to intervene, as this matter has been going on for about 10 years now.

The surgery provides excellent care for more than 5,000 patients, but the building is completely inappropriate—there isn’t enough space, patient confidentiality is under threat and it’s not possible for the practice to take medical students or expand services. Ten years ago the health board said that improving the Waunfawr surgery was a priority, however the facilities haven’t improved at all. Do you believe that this dragging of feet is acceptable, and because the Betsi Cadwaladr University Local Health Board is in special measures, will you intervene in order to move things forward urgently?

The Member is right on the situation in Waunfawr—there are huge pressures there. I understand that the surgery itself is discussing this in very great detail with the health board. The problem has to be resolved as soon as possible—I understand that. Of course, there would have to be an application from the surgery in the first instance, but to do that, of course, it would have to be discussed with the health board in order to ensure that that application was the right one. But I know that the health board understands the situation and understand that they need to secure more space for the surgery ultimately. I understand that it was a shop at one time, but that 5,000 people are served there now—1,000 at the outset—so it’s clear that the problem needs to be resolved as soon as possible.

After the loss of dozens of community beds in north Wales despite bed occupancy levels of 95 per cent or above, NHS staff in north Wales told me that new community beds would take pressure off general hospitals and enable the health board to use its resources more efficiently. How, therefore, do you respond to the statement by GPs at the Royal College of General Practitioners’ event in the Assembly a fortnight ago that community beds add to the breadth of things a GP can do, and that local care in a GP unit in community hospitals, enabling them to then discharge people home, prevents the need to put people into general hospitals and assists secondary and primary care?

This does happen, of course, in many parts of Wales, particularly in parts of rural Wales. It's important, of course, that each health board considers the right model for its area. Now, I'm aware and I've seen examples myself of how this operates well. We should not, of course, use that as a reason not to ensure that people can go home with the right support as quickly as possible, but the model that the Member talks about already exists in many parts of Wales.