Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:02 pm on 28 March 2023.
I very much welcome the statement today. The access commitment introduced in April last year, requiring a GP practice to adopt a planned approach to meeting patient need, moving away from the, 'Release all appointments at 8 a.m., and if you happen to be eighty-first, and they're only taking 80 appointments, then tough, no matter what was wrong with you'—. But how is this being implemented? What is the role of the health board in ensuring that it is implemented?
Last week, I raised a problem that a constituent had had in getting access to primary care. To quote, 'We have called Llansamlet doctors for an appointment for my grandfather every day, twice a day, since 27 February, for an appointment due to a chest infection as he has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. On 10 March, he accessed a GP, and immediately was sent to hospital'. Does the Minister agree that, until we get primary care working well at all surgeries, hospital admissions will go up? Also, will the Minister join with me in congratulating GP surgeries such as Clydach in the Cwmtawe cluster in Swansea that provide excellent service to all their patients?
On dentistry, after Brexit, we lost in Swansea European Union dentists. Was that true for the rest of Wales?