FUNDING to support improvements to maternity and neonatal services at Carmarthen’s Glangwili Hospital is in the Welsh Government’s budget for 2016-17, Health and Social Services Minister Mark Drakeford said on a visit to the hospital on Thursday (Feb 4).
The Minister made the announcement during a visit to Carmarthen to see the new neonatal unit at Glangwili Hospital.
£3m has been set aside in the NHS Wales capital programme for 2016-17 to begin the second phase improvements to the neonatal and obstetric units at Glangwili Hospital, subject to the approval of plans submitted by Hywel Dda University Health Board.
The health board is expected to submit its business case for the second phase improvements early in the next financial year.
Consultant-led maternity care was concentrated and a new level two neonatal service is being developed at Glangwili Hospital following a public consultation and advice to the Minister from independent experts. A new midwife-led maternity service has been established at Withybush Hospital, in Haverfordwest.
An independent review of the changes by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health carried out a year after they were made concluded the changes were safe, sustainable in the long-term and have led to improved outcomes for mothers and babies. It made clear it would make ‘no clinical sense’ to return to the previous arrangements.
Professor Drakeford said: “I am pleased to be visiting Glangwili Hospital today to see the excellent work undertaken to transfer special care baby services from Withybush Hospital, backed by £3.8m funding from the Welsh Government.
“A year after the changes were put in place, the Royal College review tells us that these services are safe, sustainable in the long-term and, most importantly, have led to improved outcomes for mothers and babies. The review also made clear that it would make ‘no clinical sense’ to return to the previous arrangements. To ignore the experts’ views would be highly irresponsible.
“I am very pleased to announce that I have earmarked £3m to take forward the second phase of work at Glangwili Hospital, subject to an approved business case.”
Chief Executive Steve Moore responded to the announcement, saying: “We are pleased to say staff are rightly setting a high aspiration on behalf of our patients. At the same time, this has given us and the designers a challenge given the footprint of the site – but a challenge for the right reasons. We are now about to engage more widely on what is required for these services and will be gathering ideas from wider staff across our area, as well as from mothers, patients, and families using these services. This will be shared with our design team as they develop and cost some possible solutions for a business case to submit to the Welsh Government in the new financial year.”
Mr Moore took the unusual step of appointing himself as the Senior Reporting Officer for the project late last year following an independent review of services from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, which endorsed the need to progress with Phase Two improvements to accommodation for patients and their families at Glangwili Hospital.
Mr Moore said: “It is a privilege to work so closely with our staff on such an important project and I hope it demonstrates a real commitment to them and all the communities served by Glangwili Hospital that we take the need to upgrade these services very seriously. Phase Two was always part of the programme when we moved some services from Withybush to Glangwili, but it is fair to say the health service doesn’t stand still and there is now a greater need than ever to upgrade these facilities so they allow our staff to provide optimal care and comfort to our patients. This was recognised in the recent independent clinical review of these services by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.
“I want to thank staff – from those delivering services in Glangwilli Hospital in environments which we acknowledge need to be improved, to those in Withybush, Bronglais, and Prince Philip hospitals and in our communities. They continue to provide excellent local care in the aftermath of a significant service change. I understand that recently some frontline staff have unfairly borne the brunt of some criticism aimed at the wider organisation. The health board made the decision to make changes to the way we deliver some women and children’s services in the best interests of patients and the independent review concluded the changes were safe, sustainable in the long-term and have led to improved outcomes for our patients.
“We are entirely grateful to our staff for their input and unfailing provision of patient centred care. I hope that staff have seen the tremendous amount of positive patient experiences that are shared with us via patient compliments and on social media – we are incredibly proud of them and we look forward to further engagement with staff and users of our services. Equally, can I reassure the public, particularly those in Pembrokeshire that we continue to monitor the service change very closely to ensure we are aware of any issues and make improvements continually.
Mr Moore concluded by adding: “Anyone with concerns over their care should contact the ward manager at the time so they can be fully addressed, or we would encourage patients to share their experiences with us – good or bad – by completing a patient survey, or getting in touch with our concerns team.”
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