Written question WQ97982
- Asked by
- Gareth DaviesConservative
- To be answered by
- Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
- Tabled
- Due
- Answered
- Time to answer
- 7 days
Question
How is the Welsh Government supporting the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board to bring down waiting times on orthopaedic surgery?
Answer
Answered by Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
We provided Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board with up to £29.4m of capital funding to develop the new orthopaedic hub at Llandudno Hospital which will help reduce orthopaedic waiting times.
We are investing an additional £120m to support health boards to reduce long waiting times and the overall size of the waiting list in 2025-26. Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board has been allocated its share of this finding, as part of all phases of the Planned Care Recovery Plan.
This investment – supported by recommendations from a Getting it Right First Time (GIRFT) review and the Ministerial Advisory Group on NHS Performance and Productivity – has seen a 52% reduction in the number of orthopaedic pathways waiting more than two years for treatment in North Wales over the last 12 months.
In November, I announced a series of additional interventions at the health board as part of special measures. This includes putting in place a senior team to work alongside the health board’s chief executive and board to drive rapid improvements in key service areas, including planned care.