An audit report said that the National Health Service in Wales was not providing services that fully supported the effective management of adults with a chronic condition. Too many patients with chronic conditions were treated in an unplanned way in acute hospitals, while the large numbers of community services were poorly co-ordinated and insufficiently integrated, leading to an inconsistent service for patients.
Source: The Management of Chronic Conditions by NHS Wales, Wales Audit Office (029 2026 0260)
Links: Report | WAO press release | BBC report
Date: 2008-Dec
A report examined parents' experiences of accessing disabled facilities grants in Wales and Northern Ireland. A large majority of parents surveyed (approximately 80 per cent) believed that there was insufficient information on who could apply for a grant, where to apply, and what it could be used for.
Source: Peter Mackie, Keith Bowen and Brendan McKeever, Family Experiences of Accessing Disabled Facilities Grants: A collaborative research study in Wales and Northern Ireland, Shelter Cymru (01792 469400)
Links: Report
Date: 2008-Dec
The Chief Medical Officer for Wales published his annual report for 2007.
Source: Annual Report 2007, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: Report | WAG press release
Date: 2008-Dec
The Welsh Assembly Government published a strategy for preventing suicides.
Source: A National Action Plan to Reduce Suicide and Self-Harm in Wales 2008-2013, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: Strategy | NHS Wales press release | Samaritans press release | BBC report | Community Care report
Date: 2008-Nov
The Welsh Assembly Government began consultation on ways of paying for social care services. It said that there could be no doubt that reform of the existing system for funding care was needed. Wales already had a higher proportion of older people than the rest of the United Kingdom, and over the next 20 years many more people would live longer and in better health. It had been predicted that a large funding gap would open up between the cost of care services and the money that was available to pay for them. These factors would present real challenges that needed to be addressed if the care system were to be both affordable and sustainable.
Source: Paying for Care in Wales: Creating a fair and sustainable system, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: Consultation document | Speech
Date: 2008-Nov
The Welsh Assembly government published a ten-year strategy aimed at reducing the harm caused by alcohol, drugs, and other substances.
Source: Working Together to Reduce Harm: The substance misuse strategy for Wales 2008-2018, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: Strategy | WAG press release
Date: 2008-Oct
A study found that the natural environment – including allotments, urban parks, woodland, lakes, mountains, rivers, and the sea – could play a key role in improving public health and well-being.
Source: Pat Davies and Jenny Deaville, Natural Heritage: A Pathway to Health, Countryside Council for Wales (0845 1306 229)
Links: Report | CCW press release
Date: 2008-Oct
A paper evaluated the Healthy Living Centre programme in Wales (initiated in 1998 in response to the United Kingdom Government's drive to tackle inequalities and address the broader socio-economic determinants of health).
Source: Eva Elliott, Fiona Shirani and Gareth Williams, Final Report on the Sustainability and Legacy of Healthy Living Centres in Wales, Working Paper 115, School of Social Sciences/Cardiff University (029 2087 5179)
Date: 2008-Sep
Researchers examined the impact of involving members of the public and community groups in Wales in health impact assessment.
Source: Chloe Chadderton, Eva Elliott and Gareth Williams, Involving the Public in HIA: An evaluation of current practice in Wales, Working Paper 116, School of Social Sciences/Cardiff University (029 2087 5179)
Date: 2008-Sep
An audit report said that there were clear signs that the National Health Service in Wales was improving the way it managed its finances. But standards varied too much, and some NHS bodies faced serious challenges ahead in sustaining financial balance.
Source: Are the Devolved Financial Management Arrangements in NHS Wales Effective?, Wales Audit Office (029 2026 0260)
Links: Report | WAO press release | BBC report
Date: 2008-Sep
A report explained the legal and administrative underpinnings of devolution and how they shaped the health policies pursued in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. It identified various kinds of tension building up along administrative and physical borders, and the likelihood of major intergovernmental conflict.
Source: Scott Greer and Alan Trench, Health and Intergovernmental Relations in the Devolved United Kingdom, Nuffield Trust (020 631 8450)
Links: Report
Date: 2008-Jul
A report by a committee of MPs sought to provide a set of criteria to which the health policies of the Department of Health and the Welsh Assembly Government should aspire, in order to meet the needs and expectations of cross-border patients. Rows over funding treatment for Welsh patients across the border had left some feeling like 'second-class citizens'.
Source: The Provision of Cross-border Health Services for Wales: Interim report, Sixth Report (Session 2007-08), HC 870, House of Commons Welsh Affairs Select Committee, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report | BBC report
Date: 2008-Jul
The Welsh Assembly government announced plans to simplify the National Health Service structure in Wales and meet its commitment to end the internal market. Consultation responses had supported the creation of single local health organizations that would be responsible for delivering all healthcare services within a geographical area, rather than the existing trust and local health board system.
Source: Press release 16 July 2008, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: WAG press release | WIHSC press release | BBC report
Date: 2008-Jul
A report by a committee of MPs said that the consolidation and rationalization of existing legislation in relation to vulnerable children in Wales (by means of a special order) was a 'laudable aim', which would do much to advance clarity and understanding of the existing situation, as well as to help reduce gaps in service provision.
Source: The Proposed Draft National Assembly for Wales (Legislative Competence) (Social Welfare and Other Fields) Order 2008, Fifth Report (Session 2007-08), HC 576, House of Commons Welsh Affairs Select Committee, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report
Date: 2008-Jun
An independent review report said that Health Commission Wales fell short of its fitness for purpose and should be replaced. There were fundamental flaws in the way Health Commission Wales was established, poor governance arrangements, and an unsound budget allocation. (Health Commission Wales was established as an executive agency of the Welsh Assembly Government in 2003, with a remit to commission specialized healthcare services which were not provided by National Health Service Trusts or Local Health Boards.)
Source: Mansel Aylward, Health Commission Wales: A Review, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: Report | NHS Wales press release | BBC report
Date: 2008-Jun
A report recommended that a statutory body responsible for mental health and well-being should be established in Wales.
Source: Michael Williams, A Well Being and Mental Health Service Fit for Wales, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: Report | WAG press release | Community Care report
Date: 2008-Jun
The Welsh Assembly Government responded to a report by an Assembly Committee on delayed transfers of patients between hospital and social care.
Source: Response to the Report of the National Assembly Audit Committee on Delayed Transfers of Care, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Date: 2008-Jun
A report examined the causes of delayed transfers of care from hospitals in Wales. It made a total of 46 recommendations, focusing on improving efficiency, and on establishing across Wales a 'balance of care' which would avoid unnecessary admissions to hospital.
Source: Marcus Longley et al., Independent Review of Delayed Transfers of Care in Wales, Welsh Institute for Health and Social Care/University of Glamorgan (01443 483070)
Links: Report | Summary | Summary (Welsh) | BBC report
Date: 2008-Apr
The Welsh Assembly Government began consultation on a reorganization of the health service in Wales. The proposals included abolishing the 'internal market' by providing funding from the Welsh Assembly Government or a National Health Service Board for Wales directly to hospital trusts and local health boards. The number of local health boards would be cut from 22 to 8.
Source: Proposals to Change the Structure of the NHS in Wales: Consultation Paper, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: Consultation document | Consultation document (Welsh) | BBC report
Date: 2008-Apr
The education inspectorate in Wales said that partnerships between local authorities and education providers in children's homes were in need of 'significant improvement'.
Source: Education in Children's Homes, HM Chief Inspector of Education and Training in Wales (029 2044 6446)
Links: Report | HMCIETW press release
Date: 2008-Mar
The social care standards inspectorate in Wales said that allegations of abuse against vulnerable adults received by local councils had climbed by 25 per cent – from 3,182 to 4,244 – between 2005-06 and 2006-07.
Source: Protection of Vulnerable Adults: Monitoring Report 2006-2007, Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales (01443 848450)
Links: Report | Community Care report
Date: 2008-Mar
A report by a committee of the National Assembly for Wales called for urgent action from the Welsh Government to improve workforce planning in health and social care.
Source: Inquiry into Workforce Planning in the Health Service and in Social Care, Health, Wellbeing and Local Government Committee/National Assembly for Wales (029 2082 5111)
Links: Report | NHS Wales press release
Date: 2008-Mar
The Welsh Assembly Government began consultation on a 10-year strategy which aimed to set out a clear national agenda for tackling and reducing the harms associated with substance misuse.
Source: Working Together to Reduce Harm: The substance misuse strategy for Wales 2008-2018, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: Consultation document | Consultation document (Welsh) | NHS Wales press release | BBC report
Date: 2008-Feb
A report by a committee of the National Assembly for Wales called for more action to tackle delayed transfers of care ('bed-blocking') in the National Health Service. Measures were needed to make the whole system work effectively, and reduce the growing impact of the problem.
Source: Tackling Delayed Transfers of Care Across the Whole System, Audit Committee/National Assembly for Wales (029 2082 5111)
Links: Report | NAW press release | NHS Wales press release
Date: 2008-Feb
The healthcare inspectorate for Wales published its annual report for 2006-07. All National Health Service Trusts had made 'steady progress' in strengthening their clinical governance arrangements and systems: but further improvement was necessary.
Source: Annual Report 2006-2007, Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (029 2092 8850)
Links: Report
Date: 2008-Feb
Health experts suggested new policy approaches for the third term of the National Assembly for Wales.
Source: The Welsh Health Battleground: Policy approaches for the third term, Institute of Welsh Affairs (029 2057 5511)
Links: IWA press release
Date: 2008-Jan
A report by a committee of the National Assembly for Wales said that a new family doctor contract, which included a 25 per cent pay rise, had not brought enough improvements for patients – with many still having problems in getting an appointment.
Source: Review of the New General Medical Services Contract in Wales, Audit Committee/National Assembly for Wales (029 2082 5111)
Links: Report | NAW press release | NHS Wales press release | BMA press release | BBC report
Date: 2008-Jan
A report examined how the health systems in the United Kingdom's three devolved administrations had developed, and how their approaches had differed from those in England, since 2003.
Source: Paul Jervis, Devolution and Health, Nuffield Trust (020 631 8450)
Links: Report
Date: 2008-Jan
A report examined the values embedded in the health services and policies of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and the European Union. It highlighted some very different entrenched values, including commitments to: 'collaboration and collectivism' in Scotland; the very similar 'communication and collectivism' in Wales; democratic participation, neutrality, and the new public health in Northern Ireland – 'having a say rather than having a choice'. All stood apart from England in their commitment to communities and participation rather than markets and technical solutions.
Source: Scott Greer and David Rowland (eds.), Devolving Policy, Diverging Values? The values of the United Kingdom's National Health Services, Nuffield Trust (020 631 8450)
Links: Report
Date: 2008-Jan
The social care inspectorate in Wales said that care and social services improved during 2006-07: but the quality of some services remained inconsistent.
Source: Chief Inspector's Overview: Care and Social Services in Wales 2006-2007, Social Services Inspectorate for Wales (029 2082 5655)
Links: Report | SSIW press release | UKHCA press release | Community Care report
Date: 2008-Jan
