No plans to return specialist services to local general hospitals

There are no plans to return specialist services from the Grange to Gwent’s network of general hospitals health chiefs have said. 

The Aneurin Bevan University Health Board is planning what services should be provided at its enhanced local general hospitals that include Newport’s Royal Gwent, Nevill Hall in Abergavenny and Ysbyty Ystrad Fawr in Ystrad Mynach. 

Hannah Evans, the NHS body’s director of planning, said while its intention is as many services are provided “close to home”, and it intends extending the range of services offered from sites, that won’t involve turning the clock back to how hospitals were organised across Gwent before the Grange, in Cwmbran, opened in 2020. 

At a joint meeting of Monmouthshire County Council’s public services and people scrutiny committees Ms Evans said: “It’s an important point to make, we will not be bringing back acute specialities from the Grange.” 

She said the Grange was established to consolidate critical care on one site and it previously wasn’t able to properly provide services spread across its network of hospitals: “We could not sustain those services across a number of sites, we did not have the workforce or a critical mass of patients.” 

While services such as cardiology, gastroenterology and paediatric services will remain at the Grange Ms Evans said the board will consider if elements can be provided at the general hospitals including using outpatients. 

The board’s assistant medical director Dr Paul Mizen said analysis has shown the Grange to be a success in terms of treating the most seriously ill patients, but he said others could be better served elsewhere: “For very unwell patients the Grange is a great place, perhaps it’s not so great for those patients who aren’t quite so unwell.” 

Nevill Hall has been prioritised for future investment with the health board hopeful of demolishing most of its buildings, which are impacted by lightweight RAAC concrete, other than the two towers which house its wards. 

Ms Evans said its intended to provide new buildings rather than remove the RAAC and said: “We need to address the RAAC on site and it has given us the opportunity to attract investment. 

“Had we not had the RAAC, Nevill Hall would be among many district general hospitals across Wales fighting for investment, it (RAAC) does bump it up the list for investment.” 

A satellite radiotherapy unit, run with Cardiff’s specialist Velindre cancer hospital, has already opened at Nevill Hall and Ms Evans said the Abergavenny hospital is also being developed as a regional centre for cataract surgery, serving patients from the top end of the Glamorgan valleys and some from Cardiff as well as Gwent patients, which is also helping the board recruit staff. 

Services the board says it would like to provide at Nevill Hall in future include some day surgery, which Ms Evans said it already increasing, more care for elderly people, more outpatient services, a women’s health hub, diagnostic services including x-rays, MRI and CT scanning and therapy services including speech and language therapy and physiotherapy. 

Inpatient beds would also continue to be provided and children’s services could be developed while the board is also considering if it should move mental heath services from Maindiff Court, on the outskirts of Abergavenny, to Nevill Hall. 

A first stage of developing a business plan, a strategic outline case, is due to be presented to the health board’s September meeting for submission to the Welsh Government for approval, which Ms Evans said could normally take around three months. 

She said work on any new buildings would likely start in 2027/28 but cautioned “we go into an interesting period politically” with elections to the Senedd to take place in May next year. 

A public engagement period on plans for Nevill Hall runs until Friday, August 15 and members of the public can attend the remaining presentations at Stow Park Community Centre, Brynhyfryd Rd, Newport on Wednesday, July 30 from 3.30pm to 5.30pm; the Education Centre at  Ysbyty Ystrad Fawr on Wednesday, August 6 from 4pm to 6pm and at the Bridges Centre, Monmouth on Tuesday, August 12 from 5.30pm to 7.30pm. 

An online meeting via Microsoft Teams will also be held from 5.30pm to 7pm on Thursday, August 7 and a link for anyone wishing to attend is available by emailing ABB.PlanningDepartment@wales.nhs.uk.