North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has challenged the First Minister this week over his Health Minister’s “bland response” to an independent review which found that Psychological Therapy Services in North Wales are failing in many areas.
The review, undertaken by the TogetherBetter Collaborative Consultancy, outlined a number of shortcomings including; ‘unacceptably long waits in some areas, in part associated with pathway design which is under-resourced and not fit for purpose’, ‘ a lack of strategic and integrated workforce development’, ‘an enormous data deficit, leaving intelligence-driven decision-making wanting’ and ‘a sense of despondency and, in some places, learned helplessness as to how the organisation might work itself into a better place’.
Speaking In the Welsh Parliament yesterday, Mr Isherwood, criticised the Health Minister for his response when calling on the First Minister to provide an update on the provision of mental health services in North Wales.
He said:
“On 22 January, North Wales Community Health Council wrote to your Health Minister, drawing his attention to the report ‘The Independent Review of Psychological Therapies in North Wales’, undertaken independently by the TogetherBetter collaborative consultancy — and drawing his attention to its findings of a lack of shared vision, of strategic clarity and oversight at Health Board and Divisional levels, a lack of strategic and integrated workforce development, and much more, and said ‘After nearly five years in Special Measures, much of it related to mental health services - these findings are deeply disappointing’. They also told me that they found the Minister's fairly bland response disappointing too.
“How do you respond to the contents of the letter I've received from a Professor of Psychiatry who left Betsi Cadwaladr on 31 January, who stated that the problems related to the changes proposed by the management of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, after taking on the services in North-West Wales, that none of the medical or nursing staff there supported?”
In his response said First Minister said he had not seen the letter from the Professor, but was aware of the letter from the Community Health Council.
He said: “The Minister's response at the time pointed to the fact that that was a report that was due to be considered by the Board, and that it was for the Board, as the commissioner of that report, to give it first consideration. The report is going to the Board's Quality and Safety Committee on 17 March and I know that the Minister will want to hear from the Board the plan that it will put in place to respond to the recommendations of the report”.
