Part of 2. 2. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Health, Well-being and Sport – in the Senedd at 3:01 pm on 17 May 2017.
You’re entirely right, of course, to say that we shouldn’t mislead ourselves in thinking that the situation has been resolved, because I had quite a shocking meeting with professionals in the sector in north Wales a week or two ago, and they mentioned that it was a lack of capacity, a shortage of beds and a shortage of staff that was one of the central problems, which creates a vicious circle where people are released from units too soon because the capacity isn’t there to take new patients into a community regime that doesn’t have the capacity to deal with the numbers, which, at the other end, is going to push more people into those units in order to deal with the burden. What they told me was that the situation is now worse than it has ever been before.
Now, I accept what you say in terms of a long-term strategy and looking to the future, but the reality is, of course, that there have been two years now since the Betsi Cadwaladr health board was put into special measures, and, as you said, one of the reasons for that was the deficiencies in mental health services. So, I’m sure you will acknowledge that the situation as it currently exists is not acceptable. But what people want to know is: what is the plan to deal with these difficulties now, today, whilst, of course, moving forward to longer term plans in the future?