NHS boss quits Wales to get better care for her husband
ASENIOR boss in the Welsh NHS has decided to quit her job and move to England in a bid to get better cancer care for her husband.
Professor Siobhan McClelland, who has held top positions in the Welsh Ambulance Service and Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, says she has lost faith in the ability of the Welsh Government to make good health policy.
She said one of the main reasons for moving across the border was to find better treatment for her husband who has advanced prostate cancer.
The Carmarthen-born health chief told the Sunday Times: “We have put our house on the market and are planning to move away.
“We’ve lost confidence and trust in the healthcare system here - not the staff. The healthcare system here is a key factor in our decision to move.
“We have a void in the Welsh Government where robust, rigorous innovative health policy should be made. There is neither capacity nor capability in the Welsh Government to be making really good health policy.”
Prof McClelland, who lives in Manorbier, Pembrokeshire, added that there had been delays in getting appointments for her husband and in getting him diagnostic services.
She said one of his scans was misread, resulting in the spread of his cancer not being recognised.
“I think the way the system is structured at the moment is fundamentally flawed,” she added.
“And that is impacting on the experiences that patients and their families are having and the outcomes they are having.”
Prof McClelland has more than 25 years of experience in health economics, policy and management and is a visiting professor in the Health Economics and Policy Research Unit at the University of South Wales.
She worked as a manager in NHS Wales, including in the then Gwent Health Authority, and held the role of head of evidence for Macmillan Cancer Support.
Commenting on her and her husband’s experiences of NHS cancer treatment, a spokesman for Macmillan Cancer Support in Wales said: “Early diagnosis and timely treatment are vital if we are to improve outcomes consistently for all cancer patients across Wales.
“The delays in GP appointments, diagnosis and treatment experienced by Siobhan McClelland and her husband will have caused unimaginable distress. Unfortunately, this will not be the only case of its kind.
“No-one can doubt the dedication of NHS staff but we do need to see a firm commitment from Welsh Government to invest in the cancer care infrastructure that is needed, the staff required to operate it, and the governance structure needed to make sure it runs well.”
Former Plaid Cymru shadow health spokesman Rhun ap Iorwerth said Prof McClelland’s scathing criticism was as damning an indictment as there could be of Welsh Government’s running of the NHS in Wales.
He said: “In the most recent budget, Welsh Government has added over £500m to health and social care which, on the face of it, is good news as we all want to see investment in this area, but what happens with that £500m is vitally important.
“The danger, of course, is that it is a firefighting fund, and we’ve seen time and time again, £100m here, £200m there in order to plug gaps.
“We need investment in our health service that creates long-term sustainability, not money that is going to fall into a black hole of financial mismanagement.”
In the Senedd on Wednesday, Health Secretary Vaughan Gething said: “I am, of course, sorry that Prof McClelland has cause to complain about the care her husband has received.
“I’m also sorry that she feels the need to change where they live. But I don’t accept the system-wide criticism she makes of the National Health Service here in Wales.
“Every patient understands their own individual experiences. When I look at what the system-wide reviews have shown, along with the OECD review, they did not suggest that there was a system-wide problem as described by Prof McClelland.
“And if you look at the more recent Parliamentary independent review, that every party in this chamber agreed to, they did not agree with the criticisms that are being made here.
“That Parliamentary review process has led to ‘A Healthier Wales’, a joint plan for health and social care. It includes system reform and improvement and I’m committed to delivering that.”