Health chiefs consider options for new regional diagnostic and treatment centre

Twm Owen, local democracy reporter

More information will be required by health chiefs over plans for a new facility west of Cardiff to carry out a range of surgeries and diagnostic testing.

The Llantrisant Health Park, close to the town’s Royal Glamorgan Hospital, could be designated as a regional diagnostic and treatment centre for South East Wales.

That could see patients from Gwent, as well as Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan and those from the Glamorgan Valleys, sent to the proposed centre which could also be used as additional capacity to meet demand across the region including for planned, or elective, orthopaedic surgery.

The Cwm Taf Morgannwg Health Board, the covers the Glamorgan Valleys, purchased the site in February 2023 and it would also use the centre as part of its core services.

Senior managers from Gwent’s Aneurin Bevan University Health Board have been planning with their counterparts in Cardiff and Cwm Taf how they could make use of the new centre as part of wider regional planning.

Demand

NHS Wales chief executive Judith Paget wrote to the boards this January setting out she expected work on planning the Llantrisant Health Park to “proceed at pace” and to show how they could make use of it on a regional basis.

She also told boards to consider demand for endoscopy, which is testing using a camera inside the body, radiology which is medical imaging and pathology disease testing and how that can be meet and to set out a plan to meet the demand on a regional basis.

A “clear plan” to use Llanristant Health Park for elective orthopaedic work was also required along with an outline of further developments at the site and regional working in general.

The Aneurin Bevan board members will be asked to endorse a strategic vision document for the site when they meet on Wednesday, March 26 in Caerleon, with the other boards also due to consider the plan when they meet in March.

A series of documents and reports are also being prepared in response to Ms Paget’s letter.

Grange Hospital

However the Aneurin Bevan board doesn’t consider there will be a requirement for further capacity for CT or MRI scans in Llantrisant as it has already agreed investment at its Grange Hospital in Cwmbran.

It has also already developed a regional endoscopy plan setting out current demand and capacity and the shortfall across the region.

It will then assess how it can meet the demand before considering how Llantrisant could help address the shortfall, which will be subject to a further report to the board.

Commissioning services at Llantrisant would, according to a report for the board, be dependent on future additional funding while it also said further engagement with patient group Llais and communities will be required.