New hospital site hunt continues
Public’s views sought on health shake-up
PLANS to massively overhaul healthcare in West Wales by building a new multi-millionpound hospital to the west of Carmarthen are “progressing”, three years after a public consultation.
Plans are set to see a new hospital built on a site between St Clears and Narberth which will have at least 35 acres of “developable land” with “appropriate transport infrastructure”. A new eight-page document published by Hywel Dda states: “At this early stage we would welcome site nominations and views on how we compare possible sites.”
PLANS to massively overhaul healthcare in West Wales by building a new multi-million-pound hospital to the west of Carmarthen are “progressing”, three years after a public consultation.
The coronavirus pandemic has halted or slowed down most things and proposals to shake up health provision in Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire have been diverted away from the forefront of people’s minds as a result.
However, with Covid-19 rates down and the vaccination rollout continuing apace in West Wales, the health board is asking the public for its opinions on the new hospital and the future role of existing general hospitals in Carmarthen and Haverfordwest.
Following a public consultation in summer 2018, Hywel Dda University Health Board decided to vote in favour of a plan that would see the development of a new hospital between St Clears in Carmarthenshire and Narberth in Pembrokeshire.
It was also decided that Bronglais Hospital in Aberystwyth would continue to provide acute hospital services for the people of Mid Wales and that Llanelli’s Prince Philip Hospital would remain as a general hospital offering acute care.
Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen and Withybush Hospital in Haverfordwest, however, would lose services and be “repurposed” while still offering a range of services. Elsewhere, 10 community health hubs would provide a network of healthcare facilities across the region.
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 health board has said the plan to reshape the way people receive medical treatment in West Wales is part of an “ongoing process” that is now under way with an engagement exercise running until June 21.
A new eight-page document published by Hywel Dda entitled ‘Building a Healthier Future After Covid-19’ states: “We are progressing plans for a new hospital in the south of the area, somewhere between and including the towns of St Clears and Narberth. At this early
stage we would welcome site nominations and views on how we compare possible sites.”
The health board is inviting people’s opinions on how healthcare is provided across the region, 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. According to the health board:
■ both Glangwili and Withybush hospitals will have Gp-led minor injury units and a range of other services as part of community networks of care, which also include integrated care centres and other community-based services; ■ current services at Bronglais and Prince
Philip hospitals will be “further developed”;
■ the new hospital will be a “centre of excellence for emergency, urgent and planned care” and will also provide a mental health and learning disability inpatient unit.
The site of the new hospital will 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.”
■ Anyone can have their say on the new hospital and where exactly it should be by taking part in the engagement process at www.haveyoursay. hduhb.wales.nhs.uk/ building-a-healthierfuture-after-covid-19
The new hospital will be our main site for the network of all our hospitals, providing both urgent and planned care
Spokesman for the health board