The recent decision by Hywel Dda Health Board to temporarily close the Minor Injuries Unit at Prince Philip Hospital overnight for a period of six months from 1st November, while it assesses its longer-term future, has rightly been met with stiff opposition by local health campaigners and communities across Llanelli.
I am firmly opposed to the proposal and I have spent a lot of time with campaigners from SOSPPAN (Save Our Services Prince Philip Action Network), since the announcement was made, at their protest camp outside the hospital’s entrance.
Standing alongside them and listening to so many stories of how important the unit is to local families, it is crystal clear that the MIU needs to remain a 24-hour service permanently, not just a daytime one. For a town the size of Llanelli, with the largest centre of population within the Hywel Dda Health Board area, to be left without MIU cover at night is unacceptable.
The call to reduce the opening hours of the MIU temporarily was made by the Health Board at short notice and without public consultation. The decision was not a financial one but one created by the Health Board’s inability to recruit appropriate personnel and inadequate management of staff absence there. Serious questions need to be asked as to why they have left this situation to fester for so long and why this much valued local service is now under threat.
Scant regard seems to have been given to those who will need the support and treatment that the MIU provides and the suggestion that the people of Llanelli can just as easily travel to Glangwilli or Morriston is ludicrous. No thought has been given to those who don’t have access to their own transport nor to the extra pressure that would be placed on those two hospitals who are struggling to cope with the existing demands upon them as it is.
The manner in which this decision was made has only served to damage confidence in the Health Board, its processes and the ability for it to be held to account for their delivery of healthcare in Llanelli.
Along with Lee Waters MS, I requested that Hywel Dda bosses meet with the public here in Llanelli to explain their actions and demonstrate that they are doing everything they can to support the excellent staff there. They have now confirmed that they will be holding a drop- in session on Wednesday, 23rd October between 2pm and 7pm in the Antioch Centre and I would urge as many people to attend as possible so that the Health Board can be made fully aware of local views and opinions on the changes.
Everyone can play a part in the campaign to Save the MIU either by writing to the Health Board to make your voice heard, visiting and supporting SOSPPAN campaigners at their camp at the hospital or by signing the petition against the plan.
Hard copy petitions have been placed in many local shops and community facilities and the online version can be accessed here: Against the Nighttime Closure of the Minor Injury Unit Prince Philip Hospital | 38 Degrees
Hywel Dda Health Board really need to listen and carefully consider their next steps on this. It is such an important decision for our town.
They have the responsibility of providing the level of NHS care that Llanelli needs and deserves. It is now time for them to step up and show that they are capable of doing exactly that.
