The National Assembly for Wales's Petitions Committee has been presented with a petition calling for the immediate re-establishment of the Diabetes Planning and Delivery Group and the local Diabetes Patient Reference Groups by Powys Local Health Board (LHB).
The Committee formally received the petition on the steps of the Senedd in Cardiff Bay at 12.30 on Tuesday 14 October.
The petition wording is as follows:
We the undersigned call upon the Minister for Health and Social Services to require Powys LHB to immediately re-establish the Diabetes Planning and Delivery Group and the local Diabetes Patient Reference Groups.
The closure of diabetes Patient Reference Groups in April 2011 and the cancellation of the statutory Diabetes Planning and Delivery Group (DPDG) in June 2013 denies the patient input defined in the 'National Service Framework for Diabetes in Wales' (NSF) and the 'Guidance on Involving Adult NHS Service Users and Carers'.
The closure of the DPDG is in direct contravention of instructions set out in correspondence from the Minister for Health and Social Services to Chairs of all Local Health Boards and from the Chief Executive NHS Wales to the Chief Executives of the Local Health Boards in June 2010.
The correspondence states:-
…"Each DPDG should take responsibility for leading, managing and reporting to the LHB Board and to the Chief Executive of NHS on progress with the delivery of the NSF." ......and............."The DPDG will need to ensure effective engagement with service users and is an integral part of the LHB structures underpinning the implementation of the CCM (Chronic Conditions Management) policy agenda." (There are patient representatives on all the Diabetes Planning and Delivery Groups).
