Welsh NHS gets £31m 'spend to save' fund

The £31m will support the efforts of health boards to make significant savings, which the Welsh government has estimated to be at least £12.5m every year. Among the projects included in the 'spend to save' plan are: Abertawe Bro Morganwg University Health Board's centralisation of emergency and complex surgery at Morriston Hospital; Aneurin Bevan Health Board centralisation of pain management and chronic fatigue services at County Hospital, Pontypool for more effective service delivery; Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board's refurbishment of accident and emergency at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd and Ysbyty Gwynedd to co-locate out of hours services and accommodate increased activity; Cardiff and Vale University Health Board 's purchase of equipment to digitise foot impressions and make devices to correct foot function instead of buying custom devices, saving more than £40,000 in the first year; Cwm Taf Health Board's refurbishment of a 15 bed acute ward at the mental health unit at Royal Glamorgan Hospital and the refurbishment of Campsie House at St Tydfil's Hospital; Hywel Dda Health Board's creation of a new short stay unit and clinical decision unit at West Wales General Hospital, resulting in reduced lengths of stay and support for the accident and emergency unit, and; Powys Teaching Health Board's refurbishment of wards in south and north Powys. Health Minister Edwina Hart said: "Centralising complex services in one location, as with Morriston for example, means that patients will receive higher quality, safer, more specialist-led care, as well as saving the NHS money. "Over the last four years NHS Wales has already saved around £850m and the foundations are in place to deliver greater savings and to continue to raise the quality of patient care."