Janet Finch-Saunders and Guto Bebb, Assembly Member and MP for Aberconwy have received confirmation that breast surgery services at Llandudno Hospital are to be transferred, a decision which raises huge questions about the future of the project to build a ‘Women’s Health Centre of Excellence’
In response to a letter from Janet in December, the Chief Executive of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board confirmed that the Minor Injuries Unit had funding delays of £740,000 and the Women’s Centre of £10,000 for this financial year. Although Janet had been assured that these cuts would only cause slight delays in the projects, there were no indications that breast surgery services were to be transferred or that there would be questions over the future of the Women’s Centre Project.
At the same time Guto Bebb MP received assurances from the Health Board that the Llandudno Hospital Project was still ensured
Janet said: "I am shocked and furious that we were told time and time again by both Betsi Cadwaladr and the Minister for Health and Social Services that Llandudno Hospital would be safe from downgrades. To move this service is an absolute disgrace and tantamount to misrepresentation and mismanagement at the highest level. I will be raising this further with the Minister and I am arranging an urgent meeting between myself, Guto Bebb MP, the Chief Executive of Betsi Cadwaladr and the Llandudno Hospital Action Group to discuss this decision"
Guto said: "The removal of breast surgery services is a huge blow. Whilst the budget of the NHS in England has been protected that is not the case under Labour in Wales. This announcement raises questions about all the promises made to Llandudno by previous Health Ministers and is a betrayal of the people of the area by the Cardiff Labour Government.
23rd May 2012
Lesley Griffiths: "I do not want to see the downgrading of any services in Wales."
"As I said earlier, I do not want to hear any talk about downgrading. No services will be downgraded."
"I can reassure you that there will be no downgrading, because I do not want to see any downgrading of services."
"I have just said that there will be no downgrading. I do not want to hear the word 'downgrading’. I want to see better services, so I do not know why we keep going on about downgrading."
27th June
Lesley Griffiths: "…I certainly do not want to see any downgrading of any services.
"I do not want to see any downgrading. What do I mean by that? I do not want to see services get worse. Upgrading means services getting better and I would have thought that that is what all of us would want to see, right across Wales."
"Let me repeat once again, for the record, that I of course understand how strongly people feel about their local hospital services and can assure everyone that no district general hospital in Wales will be closed, nor will their services be downgraded, under this Government."
Confirmation of the removal of the breast surgery service from Llandudno came in a telephone call from the Betsi Cadwalader Health Trust to Guto Bebb MP this morning.