Vow made over new rural health centres for Powys

Powys Teaching Health Board has insisted plans are in place to create the centres in north, south and mid Powys, with the facilities offering better joined up healthcare for patients.

The centres will offer secondary care services, and take the strain off neighbouring hospital's outside the county who cater for Powys residents.

More details will soon be available about the centres, and Adrian Osborne of the health board said: "Working with patients and communities across Powys we are developing an ambitious vision for the future of healthcare in the county.

"The people of Powys made it very clear during this engagement that ‘miles matter’ – and whilst the sparsely populated rural nature of Powys means our patients rely on district general hospitals outside the county, they would like to see us go further and faster to bring more planned care closer to home.

“Our vision for the future therefore includes the development of regional rural centres in north, south and mid Powys.

"Regional rural centres could offer better joined-up healthcare for Powys residents, as well as an opportunity to bring more secondary care services such as day case procedures into Powys from neighbouring district general hospitals.

“Over the coming months we aim to work up in more detail what a regional rural centre could look like for North Powys."

The commitment from the health board comes after Montgomeryshire AM Russell George called for new hospital facilities in Newtown, and admitted some facilities at the Montgomery County Infirmary in the town are not fit for purpose and pre-date the NHS.

Mr Osborne insisted with the consultations on Shropshire health services and clinical services provided by Hywel Dda health board soon set to take place, it was a good time to get the views of Powys residents about what they want to happen in the future.

Mr Osborne added: "The forthcoming consultations on NHS Future Fit to the east, and on Hywel Dda’s Transforming Clinical Services to the west, will provide a timely opportunity to hear the hopes and concerns of our communities about those consultation proposals, and to hear ideas for how we as a health board can address those concerns.

"For example, one option in the NHS Future Fit consultation would see Royal Shrewsbury Hospital as the main Emergency Centre including inpatient women’s and children’s services but with more planned care moving to Telford.

"Under this option our goal would be offer more planned care such as day case surgery in the county, as well as offering more local outpatient services both face-to-face and using telehealthcare solutions.

"As soon as details are confirmed for consultation on NHS Future Fit in Shropshire, and Transforming Clinical Services in Hywel Dda, we will make sure that information is shared widely in Powys to give local residents the opportunity to find out more and share their views.”