Written question WQ89887
- Asked by
- Gareth DaviesConservative
- To be answered by
- Minister for Health and Social Services
- Tabled
- Due
- Answered
- Time to answer
- 9 days
Question
What work is the Minister doing with Welsh health boards to reduce the number of patients requiring in-hospital mental health care being transferred to units outside Wales?
Answer
Answered by Deputy Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing
Our aim is to reduce the need for inpatient care through continued investment in community mental health services. We have also seen a reduction in the number of people who are placed outside of Wales to receive their mental health care since the establishment of the National Collaborative Commission Unit’s National Commissioning Framework.
In our eating disorder services, over 90% of people requiring inpatient care receive their care in Wales. We have also secured additional inpatient eating disorders beds via the National Commissioning Framework to further increase the number of patients that can receive this level of care in Wales.
Whilst it is our aim to ensure that patients receive care as close to home as possible, there will always be the need for some patients to receive care in very specialist units in England. These provide care for patients from across the whole of the UK.
To support future planning, the Welsh Health Specialised Services Committee has recently undertaken a detailed demand and capacity modelling exercise for in-patient provision.