A £6.6m investment to redevelop the cardiac intensive therapy unit at Morriston Hospital in Swansea has been approved by Health and Social
Services Minister, Mark Drakeford.
The redevelopment will help to reduce waiting times for cardiac surgery further as more people are treated closer to home at the Swansea Cardiac Centre.
The investment in the unit will increase the number of cardiac intensive therapy beds, allowing the hospital to respond to increased demand for cardiac surgery; improve existing isolation facilities and add another isolation bed. The mechanical and electrical equipment supporting the unit will also be upgraded.
Professor Drakeford said:
“The NHS has been responding to high demand for cardiac surgery and has addressed some long waiting times by offering treatment outside Wales. We have made progress in reducing waiting times and are now investing to increase capacity in Wales, to increase the number of people who can be treated closer to home.
“The quality of cardiac surgery at Morriston Hospital is excellent and patient outcomes are very good – this investment in the cardiac centre means more people will benefit from the treatment it offers.
“Our two centres for cardiac surgery in South Wales – Swansea and Cardiff – collaborate to offer a range of specialist treatments and plan recruitment and patient referrals.
“This investment means that more patients will be treated in Swansea and the two centres will be able to work together to reduce waiting times further. More specialist care will be available to people living in South Wales, reducing the need for people to travel to England.
“The programme to deliver a sustainable long-term service has been led by clinical staff and we have listened to their recommendations and targeted investment accordingly.”
