Protest at meeting to discuss future of A&E department
SCORES of protesters gathered outside a health board meeting to voice their opposition to plans to close the accident and emergency department at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital.
Three coachloads of people descended on the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board (UHB) meeting in Abercynon, which discussed the controversial changes to the A&E department at hospital in Llantrisant.
Many people had to listen to the meeting through a speaker outside because the room was full.
The health board agreed to look into two options to potentially reduce services at the hospital.
As part of the South Wales Programme, the health board is looking at either changing the A&E from a consultant-led service to a 24-hour nurse practitioner-led minor injuries unit (MIU) or reducing the hours of the consultant-led department.
Outside of the reduced hours, serious incidents would be directed or referred to A&E at Prince Charles Hospital in Merthyr Tydfil, Princess of Wales in Bridgend or the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff.
The proposals follow major concerns over staffing levels, which have become so low that the consultantled service may no longer be safe or sustainable to run.
There are worries about the effect the changes could have on travel times for patients, particularly those in the Rhondda Valleys.
Sally Evans, from Pontyclun, was one of those who travelled to Abercynon for the meeting.
She said: “The health board at the moment are not giving the option to keep 24-hour consultant-led A&E open in Royal Glamorgan and it’s crucial.
“The excuse they’re giving is that they can’t get consultants to go to the Royal Glamorgan. I can’t understand that, when consultants are quite happy to work in Merthyr and Bridgend. What is the problem in the Royal Glamorgan? Why won’t they go there? Answers need to be given to us.”
She was joined by Anna ClaytonJones, also from Pontyclun, who said: “It’s really important that we keep the 24-hour A&E open. The service is vital to the community.
“I think the distance that we’d have to travel to come up here is just too far for accident and emergency.”
Leanne Wood, AM for the Rhondda, was in attendance at the meeting at Ynysmeurig House.
She said: “People are concerned about getting to an alternative hospital in an emergency situation.
“We know the ambulance service is found wanting in many situations, public transport links are poor here, there’s high levels of low car ownership. So preserving accident and emergency services local to people is something people feel very strongly about, understandably, and I do myself as somebody who relies on those services too.”
Dr Sharon Hopkins, interim CEO at Cwm Taf Morgannwg UHB, said: “Staff across the health board have worked exceptionally hard to continue to deliver consultant-led 24-hour emergency services and inpatient paediatric services from the Royal Glamorgan Hospital, as well as the Princess of Wales and Prince Charles hospitals.
“However, continuing and growing service and staffing pressures have meant that this situation is becoming increasingly unsustainable, and safe services in their current configuration cannot be maintained beyond the immediate short term without unacceptable risks to patient safety.
“We will be working closely with staff, the public and all key partners to ensure they are fully engaged in developing our future model of care and working through all implications to ensure quality is central and strengthening community-based services at every opportunity.”