£20m funding for Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board to reduce waiting lists

Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board is to receive £20m to increase capacity in planned care and cancer services.

The funding features as part of plans for a £100m investment to kick-start Wales’ health and care system’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The money for new equipment, staff, technology and ways of working will help health boards improve services across primary, community and hospital care, by increasing capacity and cutting waiting times as they begin resuming non-emergency care following the pandemic.

In North Wales the funding will go towards increasing capacity in planned care, cancer, dental, diagnostics and endoscopy.

Yesterday we reported that more than 40,000 people in North Wales have been waiting over 52 weeks for some treatments after some non urgent routine services were postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The health board has confirmed that it is restarting “elements of routine non-urgent care that have been paused, and begin to catch up on the backlog of people waiting.”

Health and Social Services Minister Eluned Morgan said: “Helping our health and social care services recover from the pandemic is going to take time, investment and a new approach to delivering care.

“The remarkable commitment of our NHS and social care workers has helped us through this pandemic to a point where we can now start to think about the future. I am determined that we now provide them the support they need to help the service recover.

“I am under no illusions about the size of the task ahead, but it is also important to recognise we now have a real opportunity to transform the delivery of health and care services. We must take this opportunity to create a health and care system that is fit for the future.

“The pandemic saw the early and swift adoption of new technology and ways of working, I want to see health boards build on this good work.

“The Welsh Government is committing an extra £1bn to support our recovery plan. Today I am detailing how an initial £100m will be allocated to our NHS to start this work.”