Health

Withybush woes as new consultation launched

Published

3 years ago

May 18, 2021

• Health Board says coronavirus has had a major impact on services • New hospital could be built between St Clears and Narberth
• It’s a similar plan which led to protests involving thousands of locals in 2018

MORE than 18,000 people have signed the petition opposing the decision to downgrade Withybush General Hospital, but that was three years ago, and it seems that the health board may have forgotten the locals’ anger.

The health board is launching a consultation exercise to “deliver on our long-term commitment for a healthier mid and west Wales”

Steve Moore, Chief Executive of Hywel Dda UHB, said: “The global pandemic has had a major impact on all areas of our lives so it’s crucial that the health board considers, reflects and learns from this extraordinary period. This engagement exercise will allow the public to tell us in their own words how COVID-19 has affected their health and care, and access to it.

“I would encourage as many people as possible to participate.”

Under similar proposals to those first unveiled in 2018 a new district general hospital would be built on the border between Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire providing A&E services, while in some of the options Carmarthen’s Glangwili hospital would also lose services, including A&E.

The people of Pembrokeshire protested. They protested outside the hospital, they marched through Town, they took their placards to the Senedd.

There was no one, it seemed, who wanted a new super hospital ‘up the line’.

Save Withybush Hospital protests back in 2018 in Haverfordwest

Ten months ago, the First Minister and Health Minister of Wales were united in their decision not to offer any reassurances to the safeguarding of A&E services at Withybush Hospital.

With the July 2020 u-turn of Cwm Taff health board not to remove services at Royal Glamorgan Hospital, the ministers have come under pressure to offer reassurances to the future of Withybush services.

Mark Drakeford said last summer that the decision was down to local health boards, with Vaughan Gething, Health Minister taking a similar stance.

Withybush has already seen the downgrade to its maternity services, with it now being a mostly daytime service with expectant mums with pregnancy complications or those giving birth after 5pm mostly having to travel across the border into Carmarthenshire to give birth. Other departments have also been shrunk on what locals call “a salami slicing away of local services”

Speaking at a Plenary last year Vaughan Gething, was asked by Pembrokeshire MS Paul Davies, the Welsh Government’s position on the delivery of A&E services at Pembrokeshire and if they would remain at Withybush.

Mr Davies said: “You’ll be aware, there is a strong campaign to retain A&E services at Withybush General Hospital.

“Given the recent news that Cwm Taff health board has decided to retain A&E services at The Royal Glamorgan Hospital, the people of Pembrokeshire are now looking at that decision and, quite rightly, asking for the same safeguards.”

The Health Minister said that the decision to overturn the removal of services at Royal Glamorgan Hospital, was made after they were able to recruit more staff which would help them safely deliver that service. Recruitment problems have often been cited as a key problem at Withybush Hospital in recent years.

Mr Gething said, “The member will also know, over a long period of time, the challenges that have been faced in delivering healthcare across Wales and the plans for the future delivery of healthcare.”

He added “The health board is now planning for the continued provision of essential and key services alongside caring for patients affected by Covid-19.”

However, although the Welsh Government is desperately trying to distance itself from its unpopular decisions on local health provision, the buck stops with it.

In November 2018 hundreds of people took to the streets to oppose the downgrading of Withybush. But now it is clear that the plan of a new hospital further away from Pembrokeshire’s population centres and industrial complexes is still on the cards.

Surprisingly, the exact cost of the new hospital, and its exact location, is yet to be determined but the health board is hoping to finalise a ‘programme business case’ in the coming weeks which will then be submitted to the Welsh Government this summer.

A full business case can be signed off by March 2024, The Pembrokeshire Herald understands.

Protestors outside Withybush at the 2018 protests

The health board has said the plan to reshape the way people receive medical treatment in west Wales is part of the “ongoing process” that is now under way with an engagement exercise running until June 21.

According to a new eight-page document published by Hywel Dda entitled ‘Building a Healthier Future After Covid-19’ the pandemic has been a “big challenge” which created an “extremely difficult” period.

The document, seen by The Pembrokeshire Herald, states: “We are progressing plans for a new hospital in the south of the area, somewhere between and including the towns of St Clears, Carmarthenshire, and Narberth, Pembrokeshire. At this early stage, we would welcome site nominations you may have and your views on how we compare possible sites.”

The health board is inviting people’s opinions on a post-Covid future in general and how healthcare is provided across the region today and in the future – pointing out that health and wellbeing centres have been opened in Aberaeron and Cardigan while plans are in the pipeline for similar facilities in Llanelli and Cross Hands.

While many aspects remain uncertain at this stage one thing that has been decided is that the new hospital is to be built between St Clears and Narberth because “this location is the most central to most of the population in the south of the Hywel Dda area”. The site will also have at least 35 acres of “developable land” with “appropriate transport infrastructure”.

A spokesman for the health board said: “The new hospital will be our main site for the network of all our hospitals, providing both urgent and planned care. It will enable us to have more consultants in permanent posts being available more of the time and specialising in areas of care. Consultant-led services will be available 24-hours a day seven days a week.

“We will provide rapid access to specialist assessment and treatment, discharging people as soon as possible so they can receive rehabilitation closer to home. Emergency and unplanned care will be provided in a different building to planned care therefore avoiding the disruption or delay that can occur from high volumes of emergency cases.”

The public is also being asked to nominate sites for a new hospital based on four criteria: (1) The nominated site must be within the zone between and including St Clears in Carmarthenshire and Narberth in Pembrokeshire. This location is the most central to most of the population in the south of the Hywel Dda area. (2) The nominated site should be a minimum of 35 acres of reasonably developable land. (3) The nominated site should have realistic prospects of obtaining planning permission for a new hospital. (4) There should be appropriate transport infrastructure for a major hospital site.

The health board said: “Anyone can have their say on the plans by emailing the health board at [email protected] or by calling 01554 899056.”

Health

Chairman opens new NHS 111 Wales Service Centre in Haverfordwest

Published

17 hours ago

May 3, 2024

Tom Sinclair

IN a ceremonial occasion on Thursday (May 2), Thomas Baden Tudor, Chairman of Pembrokeshire County Council, inaugurated the new NHS 111 Wales service centre at Haverfordwest Ambulance Station. The event was marked by Mr. Tudor cutting the red ribbon, a task he was honoured to perform at the behest of Matthew Jones, Locality Manager of the Pembrokeshire Ambulance Service.

The NHS 111 service, which is accessible round the clock, offers urgent health advice and information about available services, including dental care and general medical guidance. This vital resource also provides support on managing illnesses and conditions and ensures continuity of care when GP offices are closed.

Speaking at the event, Mr. Tudor expressed his pride and privilege in participating in the launch, which underscores the community’s commitment to enhancing healthcare accessibility. The new service centre is expected to play a pivotal role in providing prompt medical advice and support to the residents of Pembrokeshire.

The service is free and can be reached by dialling 111 from any phone, ensuring essential healthcare advice is just a call away.

Health

Junior doctors secure strike extension in pay negotiations with WG

Published

2 days ago

May 2, 2024

Tom Sinclair

BMA Cymru Wales has confirmed a positive development in its pay negotiations announcing that Junior doctors have secured a three-month extension to their overwhelming strike mandate.

This means that junior doctors in Wales now have the right to enact industrial action over their pay until 17 September 2024 instead of 17 June when the mandate was due to run out.

Recognising the strength of feeling amongst junior doctors and the overwhelming 98% vote by members in favour of industrial action back in December 2023, employers have agreed to honour this extension to allow talks with the Welsh Government to continue.

Co-chairs of the Welsh Junior Doctor Committee Dr Oba Babs-Osibodu and Dr Peter Fahey said of this development:

“We are pleased to be able to secure an extension to our overwhelming strike mandate. Whilst we hope to put an end to our pay dispute through pay negotiations by reaching a credible deal and restoring our pay, it was important to secure more time for our mandate.

“The extension allows us to focus on talks but also provides us with the scope to get organised and enact our legal right to strike should we need to. This is about honouring the emphatic mandate of our members.

“Doctors have experienced real terms pay cut of almost a third since 2008. They voted overwhelmingly to put an end to the devaluing of their service, they know they are not worth a third less than their predecessors and they know the time is now to stick up for the profession and turn the tide of the continued erosion of their pay once and for all”.

The Welsh Government and NHS employers have agreed to the extension as part of ongoing pay negotiations where all parties hope to reach an end to the pay dispute with junior doctors, SAS doctors and Consultants in Wales.

Last month, BMA Cymru Wales announced it was suspending forthcoming industrial action for Consultants and SAS doctors and putting plans on hold to announce more strike dates for junior doctors to allow pay negotiations to take place*.

The decision to enter pay negotiations was based on a significant proposal from the Welsh Government to form the basis of talks to end the pay disputes with all secondary care doctors including Consultants, SAS, and Junior doctors, with the aim of reaching deals which can be taken separately to their respective members.

In August last year, the BMA’s committees representing secondary care doctors in Wales voted to enter separate trade disputes with the Welsh Government after being offered another below inflation pay uplift of just 5% for the 23/24 financial year. SAS doctors on some contracts were offered as little as 1.5%. This was the lowest pay offer any government in the UK offered and less than the DDRB, the pay review body for doctors and dentists, recommended last year.

As part of their disputes, SAS doctors, consultants and junior doctors carried out successful ballots for industrial action. Since then, junior doctors have taken part in 10 days of industrial action since January this year.

Community

Plea to save at-risk Anchorage day care centre

Published

4 days ago

April 30, 2024

Bruce Sinclair - Local Democracy Reporter

AN ONLINE plea to save a Pembrokeshire day centre from being closed has been lodged with the county council.

The Anchorage Day Care Centre in Pembroke Dock has been a “safe and happy place” for adults with learning difficulties and additional needs for decades.

In more recent years it has expanded to support elderly dementia sufferers.

But now the centre is expected to close, with services instead being offered elsewhere in the county, including Haverfordwest and Milford Haven.

A series of engagement events have taken place at The Anchorage recently, outlining the reasons and the options in continued service.

One parent, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “The parents and carers are all very upset at the way we have been treated, kept in the dark and then presented with what is a fait accompli to close the Anchorage, while at the same time going through the motions of a ‘consultation’ with us.

“The clients at The Anchorage have friendships with each other and staff going back decades in some cases.

“One young woman who attends ran out of the first meeting sobbing when she was told it was going to close. Another, at the second meeting, tried to address the meeting but was so chocked up at the thought of not seeing her friends anymore she could hardly speak.”

She added: “The Anchorage has been a respite in the day for parents and a safe, happy place for the clients.

“Everyone feels that the county council is not considering the feelings of the clients, most of whom are upset and frightened by change to their routine.”

Another person raising concerns said: “The centre is set to close as early as next month – meaning the sudden retraction of a service which, for many families in the area, is nothing short of a lifeline.

“I’m not sure PCC understand the gravity of the impact that closing the centre will have on the lives of many people, particularly the customers, some of whom may not understand or cope well with such a total upheaval of the familiarity of their daily routine.

“It’s so upsetting that the people who will be most affected by the closure of the centre are as much a part of the Pembrokeshire community as anybody else that the council claims to represent, and yet in this decision, I feel they’re not being seen as such.”

Since then, an online e-petition, on the council’s own website has been launched calling for it to stay open.

It says: “The centre provides day-care support to a number of vulnerable adults with varying levels of disability who are unable to process, and understand, the implications of such a decision.

“Some of those attending the centre have been doing so for over 20 years and continuity is a vital part of their lives. Removing this service will have nothing other than a huge detrimental impact on their health and mental wellbeing.”

The petition has attracted 284 signatures to date.

A Pembrokeshire County Council spokesman said: “Following the engagement sessions held with families and service users regarding the future of the centre on April 10 and 17 at the Anchorage, families said that they would like to maintain the Anchorage Day Centre and explained that they would write to the council in order to ask for the decision to be overturned.

“People who attend the service will be offered alternative care, all service users are currently having their individual care needs assessed by social work teams to fully understand which other services best meet those care needs.”