00:00to close St David's surgery and disperse around 3,000 patients to practices further afield.
00:07This includes elderly patients and those with limited travel options who will now no longer
00:12be able to access local medical care.
00:14Now, youíll be aware of the public meeting recently held where over 150 people met to
00:20discuss how best to appeal against the health boardís decision and even discuss the possibility
00:26of buying the current surgery building as a community asset.
00:30Iím sure youíll agree with me itís not acceptable that the city of St Davidís will
00:34no longer have access to a local GP surgery, and the community is right to call on the
00:40Welsh Government to intervene, given it has the power to do so.
00:44So, therefore, First Minister, will you join me and, together, stand up for the people
00:49of St Davidís and fight against the health boardís plan so that residents can continue
00:54to receive GP services in their local community?
00:57They deserve no less.
00:59Carwyn Jones AM Well, thanks very much, and I obviously have
01:02to declare an interest in relation to this surgery, because it serves many members of
01:07my family.
01:09The decision on what happens in relation to how health is organised is one for the health
01:16board, and there are established procedures for handling proposals for changes to delivery
01:22of those local services.
01:23So, we know that the St Davidís surgery notified Hywel Dda University Local Health Board in
01:29April of the intention to hand back that contract.
01:35Services are due to end in October.
01:37I know that the health board carried out engagement with residents about the future of services,
01:42because I was there, and it is important, though, to know that SAIS was engaged throughout
01:49that process.
01:51It's not just about a building, so buying a building is not just what it's about.
01:56You've actually got to staff these places, and attracting people to work in those surgeriesówe
02:05need to put significant additional sums of money on the table.
02:09Part of the reason for handing back that contract was because it was difficult to get people
02:14to work in that surgery.
02:17I know that the plan is to establish and to keep in St Davidís a nurse-led service,
02:23and I think that will be important for, in particular, the elderly in that area.
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