Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Health and Social Services – in the Senedd at 2:51 pm on 16 November 2022.
Diolch, Minister. You and I both joined the Crohn's and Colitis UK launch of their new campaign 'Cut the Crap' last week, and we heard testimonies from those who are living with Crohn's, and overwhelmingly they stressed the importance of an early diagnosis. Last week, I also reached out to my residents and my constituents on social media and asked them to share any of their experiences of diagnosis, support and treatment, and, again, overwhelmingly people spoke about how they had faced misdiagnosis, with one woman saying that it actually took her 30 years before she found out that she had Crohn's disease. In order to make this better for people, we do need to ensure that healthcare professionals are given the tools to identify the symptoms of Crohn's and colitis, and access to the appropriate tests to avoid that misdiagnosis. So, Minister, what support can be given to GPs, in particular, in recognising the symptoms of Crohn's and colitis when people first come to see them?