Confusion and constant state of NHS re-organisation is unsettling for patients - Randerson

3.59.57pm BST (GMT +0100) Mon 22nd Oct 2007

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have accused Edwina Hart of fuelling "confusion and uncertainty" in the Welsh NHS, in response to the Health Minister's comments on the number of local health boards.

Jenny Randerson, the party's health spokesperson, said:

"Conflicting top-down diktats from government will not improve the patient experience.

"LHBs had been told by the previous Health Minister to work together more on regional commissioning, partly to counter-balance the trusts which are currently coming together. Now it seems that they're being told to forget about co-operation, forget about collaboration, forget about teamwork - you're getting axed anyway!

"Where LHBs want to merge to ensure that expertise and experience is pooled, they should be encouraged to do so. That, along with greater co-operation in other areas, is the realistic way to ensure effective regional commissioning for secondary care.

"A constant state of re-organisation is unsettling for both patients and staff. Big changes can take two to three years to bed in before any positive impact is felt.

"That is made worse when there is confusion and uncertainty about the Minister's true intentions. Which boards will be scrapped? What will be the criteria that boards have to match up to? Is this policy on the hoof, or part of a wider plan?

"I want to see the NHS in Wales meeting patients' needs and making their pathway through the service as easy as possible. That has to be the priority - not meddling in structures to prove some sort of ministerial action."

Diwedd/Ends.

Contact/Cyswllt: Dewi Knight 029 20 82 1809