Bottom of league (From Barry And District News)

Bottom of league

BARRY'S sick and elderly residents have to put up with the worst hospital waiting lists in the country, according to a new National Assembly report.

Local hospitals came out bottom of the league, with more patients per thousand waiting over six months than anywhere else in Wales.

The Vale of Glamorgan's Bro Taf health authority now has a higher proportion of patients waiting for operations for over six months than both Dyfed Powys and North Wales health authorities put together.

But Chief Officer at the Vale of Glamorgan's Community Health Council Rosamund Thomas says the problem is less to do with bad management at Bro Taf health authority and more to do with the nature of the local population.

"Here in the Vale we have a high percentage of old people," she said.

"The population is getting older, so there is much more demand for operations such as hip and knee replacements."

One piece of good news is that the amount of patients needing lengthy operations who have been waiting for more than 18 months has fallen nearly 10 percent.

"At the end of July, 800 Bro Taf patients who had been waiting more than a year and a half had surgery carried out in Cardiff BUPA hospital," Ms Thomas explained.

"That will help, but we wouldn't like to see it as a permanent solution."

For the most part, waiting lists in Bro Taf are actually getting worse. The amount of patients waiting over six months for operations has risen by 4.7 percent according to the report.

Ms Thomas continued: "This has been building up. Over many years, not enough money has been put into the NHS. More money is being put in now, but it takes time."