Health board joins others postponing non-urgent cases

ANOTHER health board has announced it will be postponing non-urgent appointments and procedures due to the overwhelming pressures caused by coronavirus, writes Mark Smith.

Cwm Taf Morgannwg UHB, which covers RCT, Bridgend and Merthyr Tydfil, said it took the “difficult decision” to begin standing down some services and redeploy these staff to the frontline of NHS care. It follows a similar decision by Aneurin Bevan and Swansea Bay University Health Boards earlier this week.

The postponements include all non-urgent outpatient clinics – this includes face to face and virtual; all non-urgent planned surgery; all specialist nurse clinics and all non-urgent diagnostic services.

However, urgent cancer services and clinically urgent patients will continue to be seen.

A joint statement by the health board, along with the three councils for the region, stated: “There has been an alarming increase of Covid-19 cases across Wales which is continuing to put our health and care services under severe pressure and is projected to continue in the coming weeks.

“Such is the pressure in our areas of Bridgend, Rhondda Cynon Taf, and Merthyr Tydfil that in the last week the equivalent of almost four people acquired the virus every 10 minutes. The transmission rates in our council areas are in the highest 20 areas in the whole of the UK.

“Against this backdrop our health and social care teams across the Cwm Taf Morgannwg Health Board area are continuing to work closely to put us in the best possible position to get through these next critical weeks during the Christmas and New Year period.

“This year the traditional peak in demand we usually see in our services will be significantly greater given the high rates of Covid-19 transmission and this poses a real risk to our ability to continue to provide essential services.

“Across the health board there are currently 419 suspected, confirmed or recovering Covid-19 patients in hospital, and our intensive care beds are currently near capacity. There are also more than 50 patients in its temporary hospital, Ysbyty’r Seren, in Bridgend.”

The statement added: “Many of our staff are off work with Covid-19 and this brings additional challenges in delivering our services.

“For that reason, on December 16 Cwm Taf Morgannwg took the difficult decision to begin to stand down some services and to redeploy staff to assist in maintaining core and emergency services.

“Services such as paediatrics and maternity will be less impacted. We will update on any further changes.”

The health board said it is working to ensure all medically-fit patients are discharged as quickly as possible, as well as ensuring Covid-19 vaccinations are delivered.