Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:04 pm on 1 February 2017.
Thank you for that answer. In a recent audit of health issues brought to my attention by constituents, ophthalmology actually was near the top of the list, making me think that there is a particular issue here. Of course, with ophthalmology, a long waiting time is more than just an inconvenience or a longer time than necessary in pain, because we know that long waiting times for some patients are causing harm, including sight loss, and the report does show that. It also says that management in two health boards are prioritising lower-risk patients who are more straightforward to treat over those with greater clinical need so they can avoid failing to meet referral-to-treatment time targets. Will the Government investigate, as a matter of urgency, that very serious allegation, and will action be taken against managers who are found to have acted in this way, and will there be a review of the targets, with clinicians and with patients also, to ensure a more robust system designed to prevent sight loss?