More must be done for patients who receive continuing NHS healthcare, according to a National Assembly committee

The Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly for Wales has today published a follow-up report into continuing NHS healthcare in Wales.

Continuing NHS healthcare is the package of care and support that is provided to meet all of the assessed needs of an individual - including physical, mental and personal care needs.

In its initial report, published in December 2013, the Committee raised concerns about the National Framework for Continuing NHS Healthcare (CHC) - the guidelines the Welsh Government sets out for health services to follow. The report found that the guidelines were inconsistently applied around the country and that there was a lack of understanding among the general public over eligibility for funding and how to apply.

In its latest report the Committee acknowledges that improvements have been made since 2013, but feels more must be done to ensure that patients and their families are treated fairly, know their options and are informed about how decisions are made about the care they receive.

In its report, the Committee makes a number of recommendations to the Welsh Government, including:

• the Welsh Government continues to monitor Health Boards' progress in processing retrospective claims and the time taken to process and resolve these claims;
• the Welsh Government distributes a general public information leaflet on continuing health care and that mandatory guidance is issued to Health Boards and social care providers on where information in relation to continuing health care should be made available;
• the Welsh Government works to improve the consistency, quality and awareness of advocacy services provided by Health Boards.

Darren Millar AM, Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, said: 'We recognise that improvements have been made since our first report on this issue but call on the Welsh Government to show leadership to drive forward improvements to the continuing NHS healthcare system. Our recommendations should help ensure patients and their loved ones can be confident that the system is fair, transparent and consistent across Wales.'