Rebecca Evans AM, Assembly Member for Mid and West Wales, has welcomed news from the Welsh Health Minister that health boards will take action to increase the number of beds available for critically ill patients by tackling delayed transfers of care.
Up to 14 beds a year are being lost because of high levels of delayed transfers of care from critical care units, two new reports show.
A new developmental measure will be piloted across Wales from the autumn, which will require health boards to reduce the number of hours lost because of delayed transfers by 10% every quarter.
Welcoming the news, Mrs Evans said: “It is essential that patients get the correct level of care that they require. The more intensive level of support provided in critical care beds should be used for those patients who really need it, and, as they improve, beds should be available for them on non-critical wards so that they can continue their recovery more appropriately.”
The two reports – the first Annual Report for the Critically Ill, and an Assessment of the Unmet Need for Critical Care in Wales – present an overview of NHS performance and identify steps health boards need to take to improve care for patients. They also highlight important initiatives already in place which have helped to improve the care patients receive and ultimately drive up survival rates.
Health Minister Mark Drakeford said: “Across Wales, the NHS provides good quality critical care services and has a committed workforce. All health boards have developed and are implementing robust delivery plans supported and developed by clinicians.
“However, critical care beds are not always used appropriately. For example, not all patients in critical care beds need that intense level of care and some patients in critical care beds may be waiting to be transferred to a normal hospital ward for ongoing care and support.
“We must make the best use of the resources we already have and action must be accelerated to tackle inefficient use of our critical care beds. All health boards in Wales should have a plan in place to do tackle delayed transfers of care and will be required to deliver a phased reduction. This will require co-operation and co-ordination across the hospital.
“Wales’ critical care beds are spread over a large number of hospitals but there is a growing consensus of opinion among clinicians that they may be better be concentrated on fewer sites.”
Key finding from the report include:
- Survival rates are improving – the number of patients being transferred back to a ward after being admitted to a critical care unit is increasing. In 2012, just over 80% of patients were discharged to another ward, up from 79% in 2011.
- The NHS is meeting the demand for critical care, which has been slowly increasing over time. In 2011 there were 8,991 admissions and in 2012 there were 9,887 admissions – an increase of almost 10%.
- Re-admissions to critical care within 48 hours are very low – less than 2% of all discharges, indicating ward-based care and the discharge process are effective.
