During a Welsh Conservative debate in the Senedd yesterday, Member of the Senedd for Vale of Clwyd, Gareth Davies MS, called on the Welsh Government to recognise the growing waiting times for ophthalmic services and invest in expanding NHS ophthalmic capacity in north Wales.
According to the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) there are currently 80,000 people in Wales at the highest risk of irreversible sight loss as they’re waiting too long for appointments. There is forecast to be a 40% rise in demand for eye care services over the next 20 years with the RNIB warning of a “tidal wave of blindness” if capacity is not increased and waiting times brought down.
Gareth also shared the testimonies of constituents who were gradually losing their vision whilst waiting over 2 years for treatment. He highlighted that many patients living in North Wales were being referred to clinics out of the region, and with most ophthalmology patients are over-65, travelling to receive their treatment presents additional challenges. He called on the Welsh Government to recognise eye care waiting times as a priority and outlined how the situation was more severe in North Wales with over a quarter of those on the ophthalmology waiting list being within the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. He has subsequently called on Welsh Government to provide funding to expand the Stanley Eye Clinic at the Abergele Hospital to increase capacity in the region.
Following the debate, Member of the Senedd for Vale of Clwyd, Gareth Davies MS, added:
“The number of people waiting for eye care services in north Wales is hugely concerning and I am hearing frightening stories from people who are quite literally going blind waiting for treatment from the Welsh NHS.
“It is unacceptable and frankly an affront to human dignity that you can lose your vision waiting for eye care treatment in north Wales.
“The Welsh Government needs to make reducing ophthalmology waiting times a priority and invest in expanding capacity at Abergele Hospital’s Stanley Eye clinic to avert the horrific prospect of thousands going blind due to inadequate NHS provision in the region.”