Avoidable mortality in England and Wales, 2001-2011

Healthcare in Wales is mainly provided by the Welsh public health service,

NHS Wales NHS Wales ( cy, GIG (Gwasanaeth Iechyd Gwladol) Cymru) is the publicly-funded healthcare system in Wales, and one of the four systems which make up the National Health Service in the United Kingdom. NHS Wales was formed as part of the public ...

. NHS Wales provides healthcare to all permanent residents that is free at the point of need and paid for from general taxation. Health is a matter that is

devolved Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territories ...

, and considerable differences are now developing between the public healthcare systems in the different countries of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, collectively the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

(NHS). Though the public system dominates healthcare provision, private health care and a wide variety of alternative and complementary treatments are available for those willing to pay. The largest hospital in the country is usually the University Hospital of Wales hospital, however the temporary Dragon's Heart Hospital set up in response to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Wales The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have spread to Wales on 28 February 2020, with a case being reported in the Swansea area; this first known case was a person who had recently returned from Italy. The first known case of community transm ...

was larger, and is the second largest hospital in the United Kingdom. Unlike in England, NHS prescriptions are free to everyone registered with a GP in Wales. Wales is the birthplace of the modern National Health Service, with the idea rolled out across the UK by the then-Health Minister Aneurin Bevan in 1948. Initially administered by the UK Government, since 1999 NHS Wales has been funded and managed by the Welsh Government.

NHS trusts and health boards

Before 2009, Wales was divided into 10

NHS trust An NHS trust is an organisational unit within the National Health Services of England and Wales, generally serving either a geographical area or a specialised function (such as an ambulance service). In any particular location there may be several ...

s: * Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board * Cardiff and Vale University Health Board * Cwm Taf NHS Trust * Conwy & Denbighshire NHS Trust * Gwent Healthcare NHS Trust * Hywel Dda Local Health Board * North East Wales NHS Trust * North West Wales NHS Trust * Powys Teaching Health Board * Velindre University NHS Trust Wales is now divided into 7

local health board NHS Wales has been organised into administrative units known as Local Health Boards (LHB, ) since 2003. Following a reorganisation in 2009, there are currently seven local health boards in Wales. Local health boards may use an operational name ...

s and 3

s: * Local Health Boards: ** Aneurin Bevan University Health Board ** Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board ** Cardiff and Vale University Health Board **

Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board (CTMUHB) ( cy, Bwrdd lechyd Prifysgol Cwm Taf Morgannwg) is the local health board of NHS Wales for Merthyr Tydfil, Rhondda Cynon Taf, and Bridgend in the south of Wales. It was renamed from ''Cwm Taf Un ...

Hywel Dda University Health Board Hywel Dda University Health Board (HDUHB) ( cy, Bwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Hywel Dda) is the local health board of NHS Wales for the west of Wales. Established on 1 October 2009 from the merger of the Hywel Dda NHS Trust, the Pembrokeshire Local H ...

** Powys Teaching Health Board ** Swansea Bay University Health Board * All-Wales

s: ** Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust ** Velindre University NHS Trust ** Public Health Wales Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust manages all

ambulance An ambulance is a medically equipped vehicle which transports patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient during the transport. Ambulances are used to respond to medi ...

services in Wales from its base in

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; cy, Sir Ddinbych; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. Its borders differ from the historic county of the same name. This part of Wales contains the country's oldest known evidence of habitation – Pontnewydd (Bontnewy ...

Primary Care

Out-of-hours service Out-of-hours services are the arrangements to provide access to healthcare at times when General Practitioner surgeries are closed; in the United Kingdom this is normally between 6.30pm and 8am, at weekends, at Bank Holidays and sometimes if the ...

s in north and west Wales were reported to have reached ‘crisis point’ in April 2019. Services at

Withybush General Hospital Withybush General Hospital ( cy, Ysbyty Cyffredinol Llwynhelyg) is a district general hospital in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, Wales. It is managed by Hywel Dda University Health Board. History The hospital started life in 1942 as a wartime h ...

in Pembrokeshire and Prince Philip Hospital in Carmarthenshire had to close for the weekend of 30/31 March. During 2018 there were at least 146 urgent care shifts in Wales which did not have a single GP on the

out-of-hours service Out-of-hours services are the arrangements to provide access to healthcare at times when General Practitioner surgeries are closed; in the United Kingdom this is normally between 6.30pm and 8am, at weekends, at Bank Holidays and sometimes if the ...

Pharmacies

There are plans to enhance the role of community pharmacists in Wales. The plans commissioned by the Welsh government and drawn up by the Welsh Pharmaceutical Committee envisage pharmacy independent prescribers in every community pharmacy integrated with GP practices for access to patient records. This will enable the common ailment service, which enables pharmacists to treat 26 common illnesses, such as dry eye, indigestion and cold sores, to be extended and the pharmacists will be able to refer patients for tests. 702 pharmacies in Wales provided a total 43,158 consultations common ailment service consultations in 2018/2019, more than double the number in the previous year. In May 2019 97% of pharmacies in the country were offering the service. A pilot ‘test and treat’ service for sore throat began in 70 community pharmacies in the Cwm Taf and Betsi Cadwaladr local health board areas in November 2018. The pharmacists do a swab test to find out if the sore throat was caused by a viral or a bacterial infection. Only 20% of cases required a prescription of antibiotics.

Community Services

In April 2019

Vaughan Gething Vaughan Gething (born 15 March 1974) is a Welsh Labour and Co-operative politician serving as Minister for the Economy since 2021. He previously served as the Minister for Health and Social Services from 2016 to 2021. He has been the Membe ...

announced an £11 million fund to transform health and social care services in North Wales. Mental health practitioners will work with ambulance crews and in police control rooms and crisis cafes, safe havens and strengthened home treatment services will be developed. Early intervention services for children and old people will be strengthened.

Coronavirus outbreak

The Welsh healthcare system has been particularly impacted by the outbreak of Coronavirus in early 2020. This has been exacerbated by the fact the Welsh population is, according to Nuffield Trust research, on average "older, sicker and more deprived than the English population – so its NHS has to work harder". The Welsh Government made specific changes to healthcare in Wales to deal with the outbreak, including cancelling elective operations, building the UK's second largest hospital at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, and approving the "COVID emergency ventilator", a device designed by a medical consultant based in Ammanford. Nonetheless, Wales in late March had the largest local outbreak in the UK, centred around the Aneurin Bevan Health Board in Newport which saw a higher number of cases per 1,000 people than any other city including London.

References