Fourth Assembly Committee Legacy

Your contact details

Name:	Elen Jones
Are you responding as an individual or on behalf of an organisation?	On behalf of an organisation
Organisation (and role if applicable):	Royal Pharmaceutical society

Question 1

Thinking about the past five years, in your view:

- to what extent has the Health and Social Care Committee had an impact on health and social care in Wales?

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society believe that over the past five years the work of the Health and Social Care Committee has increasingly been recognised as a driver for change and reform.  As the professional leadership body for pharmacists in Wales, we certainly prioritise all relevant inquiries and consultations and are keen to provide appropriate evidence to contribute to the work of the Committee as we believe its work has the potential to have a significant impact on services and patient care, now and in the future.

- what has been the Committee’s biggest achievement?

For the RPS, we believe that the inquiry into ‘The contribution of community pharmacy to health services in Wales’ created a platform to stimulate change in the development of community pharmacy services.  We were pleased to see that a number of steps were taken at national and local levels to address the recommendations made by the Committee including the development of the Common Ailment scheme, the roll out of public health campaigns and the emphasis on the role of community pharmacy in public health legislation.

We consider that the transparency of the Committee’s work and ability to engage with all relevant statutory and non-statutory organisations are contributory factors to the achievements of the Committee. We also believe the reporting of Committee proceedings and the final written reports of inquiries are of a high standard and demonstrate clear reporting of the facts and issues raised as well as impartiality as part of the scrutiny process.  

- if the Committee could have done one thing differently, what would it be, and why?

- has the Committee’s work struck the right balance between scrutiny of policy, finances and legislation?

We believe the work of the Committee has generally struck a good balance between scrutiny of policy, finances and legislation. We believe however that as a Health and Social Care Committee, it should focus more on policy, service issues and legislation and refer any financial issues that require in-depth scrutiny to the Finance Committee. We consider that ensuring synergy between the work of the two committee’s will be important going forward.

Question 2

Looking ahead to the next five years, in your view what will be the three biggest challenges for health and social care in Wales?

1. Sharing of information between professionals in health and social care is critical for patient safety and ensuring people can get the most benefit from services.

2. Care for vulnerable and older people – With an ever increasing aging population it is vital that resources are in place to support older people in their homes or in care settings.

3. Chronic Conditions Management – chronic conditions such as diabetes, cancer, obesity, high blood pressure and depression have significant impact on patients’ lives and NHS resources.  As it is predicted that the cohort of people with chronic conditions will increase significantly in the future, we recommend a review of the services available to support people with chronic conditions, ensuring they are fit for purpose now and in the future.