First Minister marks 60th Birthday of the NHS

Labour’s First Minister Rhodri Morgan today kicked off a week’s celebrations marking the 60th anniversary of the NHS by saying the hard work of staff, together with investment and reform, had led to significant achievements in improving patient care and reducing waiting times.

The First Minister said: “The NHS has come a long way since we celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1998. There’s no doubt that the continued hard work of staff, together with investment and reform, has made a huge difference to the quality of care that patients now receive. Scientific breakthroughs and faster treatment mean diseases that would have been fatal many years ago are now manageable and seeing improved survival rates.

“Cancer patients in Wales are now treated faster than ever, with virtually every patient referred as an urgent case treated within the two month target – and those referred for another condition but subsequently diagnosed with cancer treated within one month. In June 1998, there were more than 9,000 patients waiting over 12 months for inpatient or daycase treatment, with more than 2,700 of those waiting over 18 months.

“The latest figures show that, with a handful of exceptions, everyone is now treated within 22 weeks – once they have had their outpatient appointment and their diagnostic tests – with many treated much quicker. By the end of next year, no-one will wait more than 26 weeks for the entire patient journey from GP referral, through diagnostic tests, to treatment.

“And let’s not forget that these improvements are being achieved against a backdrop of the service being busier than ever before, with patients coming into contact with the NHS 22 million times every year.

“The NHS is frequently a target for criticism, but every day – and this week in particular – we should celebrate its achievements, its successes and the sheer hard work it does to ensure that every day thousands of lives in Wales are either saved or changed for the better. We can often become complacent about how lucky we are to have a publicly-funded, free at the point of need health service – unlike so many other developed nations.

Everyone who lives in the UK owes our own Aneurin Bevan a huge debt of gratitude for having the remarkable foresight and courage to introduce the NHS 60 years ago.”