The Welsh NHS needs a "renewed focus on quality" if it is to provide an acceptable standard of healthcare to patients across the country. That's the warning from Alun Jones, chief executive of independent regular Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (HIW), who has outlined the biggest problems facing the health service to coincide with the organisation's annual report.
Throughout the last financial year, HIW carried out nearly 200 inspections of healthcare settings in both the NHS and the private sector. It identified sustained pressure on emergency care, as well as concerns around staffing levels, risks around managing patient safety and the accessibility of face-to-face appointments.
HIW also received 514 concerns from members of the public and healthcare staff between April 2021 and March 2022 - a 40% increase since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in 2019-20. It also received 61 whistleblowing concerns - 17 of which were deemed "high risk" and needed escalating to health boards and independent healthcare providers.
