Cabinet Minister for Health and Care, , responds to the latest
NHS Wales activity and performance data.
Cabinet Minister for Health and Care, said: Today's NHS
performance figures show the significant pressure facing
emergency services across Wales in July. There were over 104,000
attendances to all emergency departments, an average of 3,357
attendances per day this is the highest on record and I recognise
that far too many people are still waiting too long for emergency
care access.
The statistics are stark, and I won't pretend otherwise.
Performance on overall waiting times is nowhere near where it
should be. The people of Wales deserve better, and as a new
Government we are working at pace to build an NHS in Wales where
people are seen and treated much more quickly than today. Behind
every number in the latest statistics is someone waiting and
wanting answers. That is why tackling the waiting list backlog is
my absolute number one priority.
I recently announced an extra £145m to support our NHS. I will
reveal a plan in the coming weeks for how we will invest this
year to tackle the waiting list and waiting times which takes a
fundamentally different approach to what came before. This is not
more of the same. It is a decisive shift that will get people
seen quicker, cut waiting times, bring waiting lists down and,
most importantly, keep them down - this will make a lasting
difference that people will feel and see.
Our extraordinary NHS and social care staff show up every single
day and give everything they have, often under considerable
pressure and carrying the weight of a system that needs change. I
see that, and it matters massively to me. Easing that pressure
and giving them the support and the system they need is an
important part of the work being done, and it will be reflected
in the plan I will bring forward.
We must see an NHS that works better for patients and the people
delivering that care.
