North Wales council chiefs raise fears ‘corridor care’ is spreading to wards as Conwy’s leader tells Betsi board ‘enough is enough’
File image of a hospital patient on a trolley bed (Image: iStockphoto)
A council has declared a “health emergency” in North Wales over “third world” conditions for Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) patients.
Conwy County Council leader Julie Fallon’s backed a blistering “notice of motion” at a meeting today which comes as all six of the region’s county councils raised concerns about the spread of “corridor care” throughout North Wales hospitals.
Cllr Fallon said the health board’s chief executive, Carol Shillabeer, and the Welsh Government Health Minister, Jeremy Miles, failed to respond to a letter sent on behalf of all six authorities, raising concerns about the standard of healthcare in North Wales.
The letter was signed by all six North Wales council leaders and sought clarification over whether “a new policy has been introduced” placing patients “in corridors all night on wards in North Wales’s three major hospitals”.
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The move piles on pressure on the Welsh Government and the health board.
Conwy county councillors backed the notice of motion declaring the emergency, which was tabled by Cllr Cheryl Carlisle at a full council meeting today.
It warned that health services in the region are “in crisis” and demanded urgent action.
The motion calls for community hospital beds to be reopened, an end to corridor care in emergency departments, an immediate halt to premature patient discharges, and the reinstatement of the stalled Conwy West Health Centre project and its funding.
Conwy County Council leader Julie Fallon(Image: Daily Post Wales)
The letter stated: “The reasons for this Notice of Motion are as follows: Care in North Wales is in crisis with BCUHB now having the highest numbers of preventable deaths in Wales – Section 28 Coroners Reports – of which many are directly attributed to prolonged waits in BCUHB A&E departments.
“The strain being put on Conwy Social Care department is unsustainable, and health outcomes for our Conwy residents are deteriorating unacceptably. The residents of Conwy deserve safe and timely care in our hospitals and secondary care settings, and for Primary Care to get the resources our GPs need to deliver care in our communities.”
‘Completely unacceptable’
Cllr Fallon addressed the chamber saying the situation had “worsened” claiming that there “appeared to be a policy change” by the health board, placing patients in the corridors of wards at the major hospitals.
Betsi Cadwaladr chief executive Carol Shillabeer and interim chair Dyfed Edwards at a Senedd health committee meeting(Image: Senedd.tv)
This situation, she said, had led to discussions by all six council leaders. Cllr Fallon added: “It is completely unacceptable to think that they are moving one significant issue in an emergency department and actually then moving that to the wards around the hospital. Patients being treated in corridors when they are unwell is humiliating.”
She said: “This is a loss of dignity, and it’s stripping patients of their self-respect, if this is happening, and it’s completely unfair to our amazing staff. I’m going to stand up and be counted and jump up and down about this.”
She also urged the health board to address the concerns of local authority leaders: “I call upon Betsi to actually respond to the six North Wales leaders that have written to you asking for clarity on this. I think they’ve had a week now, and the fact that we’ve had no response, it’s really shocking. The fact that the Health Minister hasn’t responded, it’s incredibly disappointing.
‘Enough is enough’
“Enough is enough. We can’t have patients lying in corridors dying, which I know is what has happened in emergency departments, and that will happen on the wards as well.”
She added: “In all the 15 years I’ve been a councillor, I don’t think anything has made me quite as unhappy, cross, frustrated. I’m just generally sad that this is the state of affairs. We are not in a third world country.”
Conwy Councillor Cheryl Carlisle(Image: )
Introducing the motion, Conwy carers’ champion Cllr Cheryl Carlisle said: “We represent the people of Conwy, and the Betsi board and the Welsh Government need to know that we will no longer put up with this dangerous and substandard care for our residents.”The motion put forward by Cllr Carlisle was seconded by Cllr Jo Nuttall and backed unanimously.
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