Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Health and Social Services – in the Senedd at 1:48 pm on 11 March 2020.
I recognise the broader point that's being made. The relative levels of critical care capacity across the UK are lower than other European countries; that's true. I don't think now is the time to try to get into any of the funding or other challenges that we might have in a normal period of politics; it's really what we can do now to improve the capacity that we have, for what we expect to be an influx of really sick people who are coming to our health service and need care. And, so, yes, we are already planning what is possible, both in terms of the staff that we have, the staff that we need to protect, in terms of their welfare and well-being, because if we do see significant absences across the economy and public services, that will affect the health service too. We're also needing to think about what else is possible, even if it isn't what we currently recognise as critical care in the way that we provide it, and what that means in terms of redeploying staff. That also means switching off other activity within the health service. So, this isn't a simple matter of flicking a switch and we automatically double our capacity; it's actually about how much we can change within the service; how much we can redeploy our staff, and then what we do to, as best as possible, meet those other healthcare needs. And, as I've said, that may mean treating people in their own home in the coming weeks or months, when we would today expect them to be admitted into a hospital.
Now, I'm not in a position to share direct and detailed plans. I'm working through the detail of those plans and the instructions we'll need to give the health service of what those plans would be. We've worked through them. I met medical directors from across Wales on Friday of last week. I met with royal colleges from across Wales last week as well, and so, we are deliberately drawing together people that need to be there to make those choices. As soon as we do have a decision to make, with the plan to go with it, we will, of course, share that information. And in the way that I have already briefed, not just the Plaid Cymru, but also the Conservative health spokesperson, we want to continue to make clear what those plans are, and the detail of them, and to be able to share information on a trusted basis, as well as being able to provide public information for everyone to see and hear. And that, of course, will involve not just members of the health committee, but all Members across this Chamber. I fully expect to be making weekly statements on the position in relation to coronavirus for the foreseeable future.