Jamie Wallisallis out

Speaks about surgical hubs

I HAVE urged Cwm Taf Morgannwg Health Board for some time to set up surgical hubs in their patch – which includes Bridgend - in order to tackle the massive backlogs in elective surgery created by the pandemic.

I wrote to CTM Chief Executive Paul Mears some months ago asking him if they had plans to copy Swansea Bay health board which had decided to focus all their orthopaedic and spinal surgery at Neath Port Talbot Hospital.

So I am delighted at news that the health board is now actively exploring the possibility of designating the three major hospitals within its area to handle different types of surgery. Mr Mears told a meeting of MP’s and Senedd members last week that they were consulting staff about the possibility of concentrating orthopaedic surgery in one hospital freeing up the others to do different types of work. They also hope to work more closely with neighbouring health boards in a bid to shorten waiting times.

These moves are overdue because there are more than 600,000 people on waiting lists in Wales – one in five of the population. It is disappointing that Welsh Government has not set up surgical hubs or diagnostic centres itself especially as the English NHS is doing so at the moment. But it is good to see individual health boards like CTM grasping the nettle.

The meeting heard that if this system was adopted, transport would be put in place to take people to the hospital where their treatment would take place if they did not have a car. Obviously when you have hospitals as far apart as Merthyr and Bridgend, it is crucial that patients are helped to reach them.

Staff are also being consulted about how this would impact on them.

There is evidence now that surgical hubs can increase the throughput of patients because surgeons get better at doing similar types of operation and can work more quickly.

Other moves include setting up an advice line so that those who are waiting have somewhere to go to get an update on timings and also advice about how to stay well while they are waiting. Too often in the past, people felt forgotten as they were kept in the dark about what was happening.