Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:17 pm on 29 June 2022.
Diolch, Deputy Presiding Officer. Can I thank Members for taking part in this debate today? Can I also add my thanks, really, to the clerking team and the research team at the Senedd, who support us very ably and do so much work behind the scenes? So, thank you very much, diolch yn fawr iawn for your work supporting us as Members.
I think Gareth Davies pointed out in his contribution, of course, that people were waiting far too long for treatment and diagnosis well before the pandemic started, so we've got to keep that in mind at all times.
I think one of the themes that came across in the contribution today was communication. I think it was Rhun ap Iorwerth and Heledd Fychan who talked about the level of correspondence to their offices, and I have the same, and I'm sure we all do, in terms of people contacting us where that really, of course, shouldn't be happening, should it? We do need to have better communication with patients who are waiting and to support them waiting well. We heard this morning in the stakeholder meeting how, often, inappropriate letters can be sent out and inappropriately worded letters can be sent out. So, I think it's worth looking at our health boards and supporting health boards in terms of their communication—how they word and relay their messages to patients who are waiting. And, of course, those letters being sent in a timely manner as well. I think I relayed in my opening comments how one stakeholder mentioned there were 20 drafts for a letter to go through a process. Like I say, I'm grateful the Minister's looking at and querying that, and I think it's worth querying that process, because that then puts in a delay. You might want to get the letter right, but it puts in a delay in actually getting the letter out to patients.
Another theme coming across quite strongly this afternoon was, of course, the workforce and the retention of staff. This isn't just about recruiting staff; it's about the retention of staff. I think it was mentioned by Buffy Williams and Sam Rowlands, and again it's about perhaps those improved working conditions. But, all the time, the issue of capacity kept coming up throughout our work, and again at the stakeholder meeting this morning. And, again, the question really is: is there sufficient capacity to deliver the plan that you want to see? So, stakeholders are saying, 'Yes, I'm efficient'—