Over 1,000 Deaths While Waiting for Treatment in A&E Departments in B.C.U.H.B
An FOI request has shown that 1,027 people have died while waiting for treatment in Accident and Emergency departments in the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. Janet Finch-Saunders, the Member of the Welsh Parliament for Aberconwy, was shocked by the numbers released, stating:
“Following a request from a constituent to submit an FOI on deaths in A&E departments, I am shocked and upset, by the figures released. While I acknowledge and welcome that where a condition is judged to be potentially life-threatening a patient would be appropriately prioritised, as well as the fact that patients who passed away in the A&E department might not have been seeking medical assistance for issues relating to their cause of death, these figures are shocking.
“In the 24 months leading up to 30 September 2025, 297 patients died in Ysbyty Gwynedd while waiting for treatment in A&E, 385 patients in Ysbyty Glan Clwyd, and 345 in Wrexham Maelor Hospital.
“Questions need to be asked about the role that long waiting times are having on these statistics. Even in my own constituency, I have heard from residents that some who need to seek medical treatment decline going to hospital as a result of these long waits. One constituent waited hours in pain and later signed a letter confirming his decision not to attend hospital again due to this past experience.
“This is unacceptable, and I call on the Welsh Government to conduct an inquiry into the role long waiting times are having on deaths in A&E departments, as well as to take immediate action to reduce these times.”
ENDS
Photo: Janet Finch-Saunders MS/AS
