GARETH DAVIES, Vale of Clwyd MS has called on the Welsh Government to provide an update on progress being made by Digital Health and Care Wales in delivering digital health records, amid ongoing concerns about delays in the rollout.
Mr Davies raised the issue in the business statement, highlighting concerns that Wales continues to lag behind other parts of the UK when it comes to digitisation, despite previous warnings about the importance of modernising health records.
He referenced comments made by the Chief Medical Officer for Wales, Frank Atherton, who previously acknowledged that Wales had been “behind the curve” on digital records, making it more difficult to identify vulnerable individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mr Davies also pointed to comments made by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care in July last year, where he admitted he had “serious concerns” about the Digital Health and Care Wales’s ability to deliver major national digital programmes, alongside audit reports which have identified ongoing governance and delivery challenges since Digital Health and Care Wales was established in 2021. The Welsh Government made the decision to change the escalation status following recommendations from Welsh Government officials.
Mr Davies warned that despite these concerns being raised, progress appears to remain slow, with patients and healthcare professionals still lacking access to fully integrated digital records across the NHS in Wales.
While welcoming the rollout of the Badger Notes maternity app, Mr Davies stressed that digital access must be expanded across all areas of healthcare to ensure patients receive efficient and modern care.
Following the exchange, Gareth Davies MS said: “Wales is still lagging behind when it comes to digital health records, and that has real consequences for patient care and the efficiency of our NHS.
“Serious concerns have already been raised about the ability of Digital Health and Care Wales to deliver, so it’s vital that we now see clear progress in addressing these governance and delivery issues.
“Patients and clinicians alike deserve access to a modern, fully digitised health service, and the Welsh Government must bring our health service into the 21st century and leave the paper records in the past.”
