News

Health Board takes actions to protect healthcare for the most critically ill

Published

4 years ago

January 7, 2022

HEALTH and care services across West Wales are responding to the impacts of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in order to provide emergency and urgent care for patients in the safest way possible during the coming weeks.

Hywel Dda University Health Board is taking a number of actions today, and appealing for the continued support of our staff and communities to keep Hywel Dda safe as we face this new phase of the pandemic.

Actions are being taken in a planned way due to the high demand we are seeing for non-COVID care during this time of the year, together with high incidence of COVID-19 in our area, like the rest of the UK.

This is starting to result in higher numbers of COVID admissions and incidences in our hospitals and communities.

It is also having a direct impact on our staffing levels across primary care, community and hospital services. We currently estimate that at least 10 per cent of our workforce is absent for both COVID and non-COVID related reasons. This figure is higher in some teams and we expect it to rise in the coming weeks. We need to plan how we deliver the most critical clinical services with the staff we have available.

Actions being taken include:

The health board is providing and reminding staff of the services available to them internally to support them at this difficult time. It is standing down some less urgent work in order to redeploy staff where possible.
To maintain delivery of the most urgent cancer surgery in the short term, this will be undertaken for the Hywel Dda population from Prince Philip Hospital, in Llanelli, with the exception of Head and Neck urgent cancer surgery, which will continue at Glangwili General Hospital, in Carmarthen.. Our clinicians believe that concentrating the majority of our urgent care resources onto one site during the next few weeks is the best way to protect the delivery of this potentially life-saving surgery. This position will be continually reviewed and we will seek to re-establish urgent cancer surgery at our other main hospitals as soon as we can do so safely. We ask patients and families to support us and travel for their surgery. If you have no means to travel for your surgery, then please contact us on our COVID enquiries line on 0300 303 8322 or email [email protected]
Outpatient & therapy appointments and clinics will be prioritised for the most urgent patients over the next few weeks. With the exception of a small number of emergency cases and some children’s appointments, we will reschedule outpatient appointments next week. Patients will be re-booked according to clinical urgency in subsequent weeks. Unless you are contacted directly by the health board, please attend any appointment as scheduled. If anyone has concerns about the delay in their outpatient appointment, as a result of this short term measure, they can contact the health board on 0300 303 8322 or email [email protected]

Director of Operations Andrew Carruthers said: “The whole of the UK is facing challenge from Omicron and the indirect impact on staffing. This is affecting us in Hywel Dda UHB across all our services whether in the community, primary care or hospitals, but to different degrees and is a very fluid situation. To ensure the delivery of care for the most critically unwell, and to ensure we protect the ability of our staff to provide this care, we have put in place actions that will provide some extra capacity. We apologise to anyone affected adversely by these actions and it remains our ambition, always, to re-establish our planned care services as soon as we are able to, knowing the impact this has on people’s lives.”

Director of Nursing, Quality and Patient Experience Mandy Rayani added: “We are so grateful to our staff who continue to work in difficult circumstances, always driven by the desire to provide the best care possible to our population. We are asking our staff to be vigilant about the behaviours we know reduce transmission of COVID-19 at work and at home; and our public can also play a significant role in supporting the NHS and each other by also adhering to these principles. Unfortunately we are seeing more abuse targeted at our staff and we will not tolerate this. Health and care staff – from the clinicians to the support teams and call handlers in primary, community and hospital teams – provide a service to help our patients and communities and they should never be the victims of abuse, physical or verbal. Please help us to help you.”

Steps you can take to protect more lives, our NHS and each other include:

Get your full course of vaccination https://hduhb.nhs.wales/healthcare/covid-19-information/covid-19-vaccination-programme/
Follow Welsh Government guidance on self-isolation and testing, including carrying out regular LFDs (health and care staff have specific and different guidance internally)
Wear face coverings, or if asked in a health setting, a surgical face mask
Keep a 2meter distance from others when you can
Wash hands regularly and be ready to be asked by a healthcare professional to wash hands or sanitise whether in hospital or your own home
Do not accompany people to hospital, GP surgery, or another setting unless they are vulnerable and need your assistance
Please be aware that your GP surgery may offer you appointments in different ways where appropriate, such as over the telephone or online. Please allow extra time when ordering prescriptions during this busy time. Community pharmacies are also extremely busy so you may need to wait longer than usual.
Pre-arrange hospital visiting with the ward sister and be understanding if it is not possible at this time due to safety

The health board continues to work closely with others including the Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust, local authorities and other partners to work together in these challenging times.

If you or a loved one is unwell, remember:

There is support to care for yourself when appropriate, for example at https://111.wales.nhs.uk/livewell/caringforyourself/ and through the online symptom checker. Our community pharmacists can provide some walk-in care, and treatments for common ailments, find your nearest service here: https://hduhb.nhs.wales/healthcare/services-and-teams/pharmacy/; as well as our minor injury units: https://hduhb.nhs.wales/healthcare/hospitals-and-centres/minor-injuries-units/
If you have a serious, life threatening emergency please continue to call 999.
If it’s urgent (but not an emergency), visit the NHS111 Wales symptom checker, dial 111, or seek urgent care through your GP.

If you have a relative or loved one in hospital who is medically fit but is waiting to be discharged, you may be able to help us by providing short term care or considering interim placements in care homes.

News

Parties make final push as Wales prepares to vote in historic Senedd election

Published

12 hours ago

May 6, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Campaign leaders criss-cross country in last-minute battle for crucial votes

WALES heads to the polls tomorrow (Thursday, May 7) after a frenetic final day of campaigning that saw party leaders, candidates and activists make one last push to win over undecided voters in what is being described as the most unpredictable Senedd election in modern Welsh history.

With polling stations due to open at 7:00am, parties spent Wednesday targeting key battleground constituencies across the country, including the new Ceredigion Penfro seat, amid growing expectations of a fragmented Senedd and a dramatic shake-up in Welsh politics.

The election is the first to be held under Wales’ new expanded Senedd system, with 96 Members of the Senedd being elected across 16 large constituencies using a proportional closed-list voting system.

Reform UK appeared to finish the campaign with significant momentum following a major rally on Tuesday attended by party leader Nigel Farage. The event drew large crowds and considerable online attention as Reform attempted to convert strong polling figures into seats in Cardiff Bay for the first time.

Farage used the rally to attack both Labour and Plaid Cymru, while positioning Reform as the party of “change” for disillusioned voters. Reform campaigners have focused heavily on immigration, cost of living pressures and opposition to what they describe as “wasteful government spending.”

Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth spent the final day presenting his party as the main alternative to both Labour and Reform UK, insisting Plaid could “build a fairer Wales” while warning against what he described as “divisive politics.”

Labour figures, including First Minister Eluned Morgan and deputy leader Huw Irranca-Davies, urged voters not to “take risks” with public services, arguing only Welsh Labour could protect the NHS and local councils during a period of economic uncertainty.

Labour activists were heavily focused on turnout operations in traditional strongholds, amid polling suggesting the party could lose ground after decades as the dominant force in Welsh politics.

The Conservatives attempted to rally core voters with warnings about both Labour and Reform, while also focusing on farming, the rural economy and healthcare waiting lists.

In west Wales, Conservative candidates Paul Davies and Sam Kurtz spent the day meeting voters and carrying out final campaign visits across Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion, arguing their experience and local knowledge would be important under the new electoral system.

The Liberal Democrats and Green Party also maintained visible campaigns in several areas, hoping tactical voting and the proportional voting system could help them secure representation.

Across Wales, campaign teams handed out leaflets outside transport hubs, supermarkets and town centres, while social media campaigning intensified throughout the day.

Political analysts believe turnout could prove decisive, particularly because the new voting system means relatively small shifts in support could determine the allocation of the fifth and sixth seats in many constituencies.

The campaign has been dominated by debates over the NHS, farming, the economy, transport, tourism and the rising cost of living, alongside concerns about the future direction of Welsh devolution.

Polling stations open across Wales from 7:00am until 10:00pm on Thursday, with counting due to begin on Friday morning.

The Herald will provide live election coverage online throughout polling day and count day, including updates from count centres, candidate interviews and reaction as results emerge from across west Wales and the rest of the country.

News

Plaid Cymru projected to lead Senedd as Labour faces historic collapse

Published

12 hours ago

May 6, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Final poll suggests Welsh politics could be on the brink of a major realignment

PLAID CYMRU is on course to become the largest party in the Senedd, according to the final YouGov MRP projection for ITV Cymru Wales before polling day.

The model suggests Labour’s century-long dominance of Welsh elections could be coming to an end, with Plaid projected to win 43 seats in the newly expanded 96-member Senedd.

Reform UK is forecast to finish second on 34 seats, while Labour is projected to fall to just 12.

The poll, based on responses from more than 4,600 adults between April 25 and May 4, puts Plaid Cymru on 33% of the vote, ahead of Reform UK on 29%. Labour is on 12%, the Conservatives on 9%, the Greens on 8% and the Liberal Democrats on 6%.

Labour facing major losses

The projection points to a dramatic collapse in Labour support across Wales.

YouGov’s central estimate would represent a notional loss of 32 seats for Labour compared with the 2021 result under the new electoral system.

It would also be Labour’s worst result at any major Welsh election since 1906.

The model suggests Labour may fail to top the poll in any of the 16 new Senedd constituencies, and could return no members at all in four of them.

In west Wales, Labour’s support is projected to have fallen into single figures in some areas.

First Minister Eluned Morgan, who leads Labour’s list in Ceredigion Penfro, could also be at risk if the projection proves accurate.

Reform surge

Reform UK is projected to make major gains, rising from just 1% of the vote in 2021 to 29% in the final pre-election model.

The party’s support appears to be spread widely across Wales, though it is weaker in Cardiff and strongest in parts of the south Wales valleys.

One of the most striking projections is in Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr, which includes the Merthyr Tydfil area where Keir Hardie was elected as Wales’s first Labour MP in 1900.

There, YouGov’s central estimate puts Reform UK narrowly ahead on 34%, Plaid Cymru on 33%, and Labour on 14%.

Smaller parties

The Conservatives are projected to win just four seats, which would be their weakest devolved election result.

That would leave them one short of the five members needed to form an official political group in the Senedd.

The Greens are forecast to enter the Senedd for the first time, winning two seats in Cardiff.

The Liberal Democrats are projected to win one seat in Brycheiniog Tawe Nedd, keeping Jane Dodds in the Senedd.

No majority expected

No party is projected to win the 49 seats needed for an outright majority.

YouGov’s modelling suggests Plaid Cymru would be best placed to lead the next Welsh Government, but would probably need support from another party.

Plaid and Labour together reach a majority in most of the model’s simulations, while a Plaid-Green arrangement does so far less often.

A Reform-Conservative majority appears unlikely in the projection.

Under the new D’Hondt voting system, small movements in vote share could still make a significant difference, particularly for the final seats in each constituency.

Polling stations open tomorrow, Thursday, May 7.