THE Welsh Government should end the “postcode lottery” for MS care in North Wales.
That was the view of Anglesey AM Ieuan Wyn Jones when he questioned Health Minister Leaslie Griffiths in the Senedd.
“I was shocked to recently learn that there is only one MS specialist nurse covering North Wales and some parts of northern Powys. This one nurse, based at Rhyl, has a caseload of almost 1,000 people living with MS and is doing the work that in south-east Wales would be carried out by three nurses,” he said.
The Minister agreed that specialist nurses were important, that people should have access to them and that local health boards needed to look at the matter.
Mr Jones added that he would pursue the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board over MS care provision.
“I’m pleased that the Minister agreed that something needs to be done and I hope she’ll now put pressure on the LHB to ensure that the provision of specialist nurses for treating MS patients in the north is as good as it can be,” he said.
A BCUHB spokesman said: “The Health Board recognises that patients with MS have varied and complex needs and are working hard to ensure that individual patients’ needs can be met within the existing services.”