Health

Hospital visiting arrangements updated by Hywel Dda University Health Board

Published

3 months ago

March 4, 2023

FAMILY and friends can now attend hospitals to visit patients under Hywel Dda University Health Board’s revised visiting arrangements.

The new arrangements, set out below, reflect feedback received from patients, their families, and staff about their experiences during the pandemic. They apply to all inpatient areas across health board sites, including adult, paediatric and infants, mental health and community areas.

Revised visiting arrangements:

Standard or core visiting hours for general wards are agreed as 2pm-4pm and 6pm-8pm.
Open/flexible visiting is in place in critical and specialist care units such as intensive care, special care baby unit, maternity and paediatrics).
Only two visitors allowed at the bedside at any one time.
Visiting ‘by appointment’ is encouraged to prevent overcrowding in a bay/ward at any one time and will be adopted when there is an increased incidence of certain communicable diseases in the general population, for example, COVID-19 or influenza.
If visiting ‘by appointment’ is in place, this will be communicated to patients and visitors.
Ward sisters/charge nurses/midwives in charge can use their discretion to facilitate visiting outside of core hours and in exceptional circumstances.
Mealtimes remain protected as quiet times, with the option for visitors/carers to make arrangements with the ward sister/charge nurse to assist with feeding as appropriate.
Where appropriate ‘virtual visiting’ can be supported.
Specific visiting arrangements may be introduced to prevent the transmission of infection, for example, during an outbreak of infection on the ward.
All visitors are advised not to visit if unwell with a gastrointestinal or respiratory infection.
Please help us to prevent the spread of infection at all times and clean your hands before and after you leave the ward.
The health board supports anyone who chooses to wear face coverings on our sites. In line with infection prevention and control guidance, staff, patients and visitors may on occasion be required to wear face masks in certain circumstances, such as in areas dealing with respiratory infections, or to protect our most clinically vulnerable people.

Mandy Rayani, Director of Nursing, Quality and Patient Experience said: “On behalf of the health board I would firstly like to extend our deepest thanks and gratitude to our communities, our patients and their families for your understanding and adherence to the hospital visiting rules that we previously had to impose throughout the pandemic. Your diligence and awareness of the need to keep loved ones safe in hospital has been key in our efforts to fight the virus.

“We recognise the therapeutic benefits of patients receiving visitors and the contribution they can bring to overall patient well-being. I am therefore delighted to confirm that these updated visiting arrangements are now in place, enabling our patients to have visitors while protecting their privacy and dignity, and ensuring they are cared for within a safe, secure and efficient environment.”

Hywel Dda University Health Board requests people not to visit any of its hospital sites if you:

feel unwell;
have flu-like symptoms or a respiratory infection;
currently have, or had, diarrhoea and/or vomiting in the past 48 hours;
have been in contact with anyone with the above symptoms in the past 48 hours;
have an existing medical condition or are on medication that puts them at risk of infection.

Health

Consultation launched on paediatric services at Withybush and Glangwili hospitals

Published

6 days ago

May 29, 2023

Tom Sinclair

BETWEEN May 26 and August 24, 2023, Hywel Dda University Health Board (HDUHB) will be inviting members of the public, staff and partner organisations, to share their views about urgent and emergency children and young people’s (paediatric) services at Withybush and Glangwili hospitals. We are seeking your views on how best to provide these services following a series of temporary changes made since 2016. This is part of the health board’s wider strategy to improve health and care in the region.

Maria Battle, HDUHB Chair, explains: “Following the temporary changes to paediatric services made since 2016, we now need to implement a longer-term solution that will be in place until the proposed new urgent and planned care hospital is developed. We have worked with our clinical and paediatric teams to identify the options for the services in the future and have three options that we would like your views on. At this stage, we do not have a preferred option for how urgent and emergency paediatric services at Withybush Hospital and Glangwili Hospital will be delivered.”

Professor Phil Kloer – Executive Medical Director and Deputy Chief Executive Officer added: “For all three options, it is important to note that access to children’s emergency care will be retained at Glangwili Hospital’s emergency department, and minor injuries for children will continue to be treated at both Withybush and Glangwili hospitals. Also, systems are already in place to ensure that any child or young person with critical conditions arriving at Withybush Hospital has the best care available and in the most appropriate place. This will continue as part of the new service.

“Before making any final decisions, the Board will consider all your feedback at the Board meeting towards the end of 2023 alongside all other evidence and relevant information collated during the process so far.”

Lee Davies, HDUHB Executive Director of Strategy and Planning, said: “During the consultation, the health board will be seeking feedback from everyone in our communities – particularly current and future users of our paediatric services. This is an opportunity to get involved and share your thoughts about the three options we are considering.

“Your views, along with other evidence and considerations, will help Hywel Dda University Health Board choose the most appropriate option for the future of urgent and emergency children and young people’s services at Withybush and Glangwili hospitals. We look forward to meeting with members of our communities during the coming weeks.”

The public drop-in events will be held between 1pm-6pm on:

20 June, Carmarthen Athletics Club, Cillefwr Industrial Estate, Carmarthen
23 June, Phoenix Centre, Goodwick, Fishguard
27 June, Cardigan Leisure Centre, College of Further Education Road, Cardigan
29 June, Pill Social Club, Cellar Hill, Milford Haven
3 July, Haverfordwest Rugby Club, Haverfordwest

In addition to the drop-in events, three online sessions are planned for:

19 June, 10am
22 June, 6.30pm
26 June, 1pm

Details of the consultation, including information on how to register for the online sessions, copies of the consultation documents in a range of formats, and details of how to share your views, will be available on the health board’s website from 26 May: Future Children Services – Hywel Dda University Health Board (nhs.wales)

Health

NHS staff must get Welsh government pay offer without delay, says UNISON

Published

1 week ago

May 25, 2023

Tom Sinclair

NHS workers Wales must receive a newly approved wage rise in their pay pockets as soon as possible, UNISON said this week (Wednesday, May 24)

Leaders at UNISON, the largest health union in Wales, have welcomed the Welsh government decision to sign off the new pay offer but say the money must reach workers without delay.

The offer consists of a 5% wage increase (payable from 1 April 2023) and an additional one-off payment for 2022/23 – worth between £900 and £1,190.

Earlier this month UNISON consulted with staff on Agenda for Change contracts (those directly employed by the NHS) over the Welsh government’s pay offer for 2023/24 and an additional one-off ‘recovery payment’ for the previous financial year.

A significant majority (78%) voted to accept the offer, with just 22% voting to reject.

All NHS unions then met on Monday (May 22) declaring the majority of health unions in favour of the deal and a final decision to implement the offer was made by Welsh government today (Wednesday).

UNISON Cymru/Wales head of bargaining and campaigns Jess Turner said: “We’re pleased the new pay offer will now be rolled out but it’s vital that it reaches pockets of NHS staff in Wales without delay.

“The NHS is one team. Every job and every worker make an essential contribution to patient care.

“Thanks to this deal, NHS staff will receive their pay rise much sooner than in previous years. This sets an expectation for the way NHS pay is approached in future in Wales.”

Health

Alarm as ambulance response times continue to fall short

Published

2 weeks ago

May 18, 2023

Tom Sinclair

PLAID CYMRU politicians have expressed grave concerns as waiting times for ambulances in west Wales continue to fall short of Welsh Government targets.
Data released this week (May 18) by the Welsh Government showed that during April 2023 only 46.8% of immediately life-threatening incidents within the Hywel Dda Health Board area were attended within 8 minutes. There is currently a target for 65% of such severe ‘red’ calls to have a response within 8 minutes.
Figures for west Wales fell below national average – with just over half (53%) of ‘red’ calls across Wales responded to within 8 minutes. In the neighbouring Powys Teaching Health Board, 42.6% of such emergency calls were attended to within the target 8 minutes.
The latest NHS figures also showed that at the end of March 2023, 31,700 patients’ pathways were waiting more than two years for treatment – falling around 5,000 from the previous month.
The Welsh Government had previously set a target that no-one would be waiting for more than 2 years for treatment as at the end of March 2023.
Earlier this year, Plaid Cymru published its five-point plan to help tackle the crisis in the NHS, but this was voted down by Labour.
Responding to the figures, Cefin Campbell, Plaid Cymru Member of the Senedd for Mid & West Wales said: “These latest ambulance response times continue to be alarming. Now we’re into spring, it’s clear that we’re no longer talking about seasonal pressures – but rather a deep-rooted inability to get to grips with the grid-lock in our NHS.
“The figures sadly reflect a growing trend I’m regularly seeing in my inbox and on the doorstep, with constituents across west Wales citing lengthy delays for an ambulance – often with devastating consequences. Whilst I am aware of the unprecedented pressures the pandemic has placed on our hardworking NHS staff and services, clearly urgent action needs to be undertaken to overcome these problems.”
Rhun ap Iorwerth MS, Plaid Cymru’s Health spokesperson added: “Welsh Government’s inability to improve waiting times sufficiently for patients – missing their own targets in the process, and even showing apparent denial that they weren’t on course to meet them – raises serious questions about Labour’s credibility in terms of running the health service. I don’t think it’s impossible for us to put together a vision and to deliver on that vision in a way that delivers better healthcare than we currently see being delivered here in Wales today. But when Labour can’t manage to reach their own targets, it’s hard to have any confidence in their ability to fix these issues.”