The Welsh Government is investing £7 million in a new operating theatre and two new scanners at hospitals across South Wales, Heath Minister Vaughan Gething has announced.
£1 m will be used to develop an extra operating theatre at the University Hospital in Llandough, as part of a new elective treatment centre at the hospital.
The centre is part of Cardiff and Vale University Health Board’s clinical services strategy, which involves separating planned care from the theatres used for complex and emergency surgery at the University Hospital of Wales, in Cardiff.
A further £2.542 m is being invested in a replacement MRI scanner at Prince Charles Hospital in Merthyr Tydfil, and £2.185 m in a replacement CT scanner at the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport.
Both of these investments will help the NHS to deliver timely diagnostic and imaging scanning, which will help to reduce the time patients spend in hospital.
Health Minister, Vaughan Gething, said: “The Welsh NHS treats hundreds of thousands of people each and every week so it’s vital we invest in the equipment and infrastructure our healthcare professionals need to ensure they can care for patients using state-of-the-art equipment in the most modern facilities.
“The investment I’m announcing today will allow the NHS to develop services, which benefit patients across South Wales, ensuring the health service can provide timely care and help reduce waiting times.”
Dr Graham Shortland, executive medical director at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, said: “This important investment will allow us to continue to implement our Clinical Services Strategy by developing sustainable services and an infrastructure to deliver high-quality and timely care for patients resident in Cardiff, the Vale of Glamorgan and wider south Wales.”
Dr Balan Palaniappan, clinical director for Radiology Services at Cwm Taf University Health Board, added: "We are delighted with the announcement. Alongside the Diagnostics Hub at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital, replacement of the ageing MRI scanner with a state-of-the-art machine at Prince Charles Hospital will provide equitable access to a high quality diagnostics service for the people of Cwm Taf. This will be hugely beneficial, also providing MR imaging support for the excellent cancer diagnostics work that we are currently undertaking in the health board.”
