Answers demanded on overnight hospital discharges

Kirsty Williams, leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, is calling for an investigation into why nearly 20,000 hospital patients in Wales have been discharged in the middle of the night.

Official figures show that, since 2012, the number of patients discharged between 11pm and 6am by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board which covers Llangollen - including patients who discharged themselves – totals 6,672.

And research by the Welsh Liberal Democrats, via the Freedom of Information Act, reveal that across Wales 19,702 patients have been discharged overnight since in the past two years.

The party discovered that not a single health board in Wales records the reasons why patients have been discharged. 

It is also currently not mandatory for boards to track the leaving time of patients and therefore many have admitted that their data is not necessarily ‘complete or accurate’. 

Cardiff and Vale UHB was the only health board to withhold the information.

The figures collated are for inpatients only.  Inpatient means that the procedure requires the patient to be admitted to the hospital, primarily so that he or she can be closely monitored during the procedure and afterwards, during recovery.

Kirsty Williams AM said: “It is shocking that nearly 20,000 patients were discharged in the middle of the night. The Welsh Labour Government needs to get to the bottom about why these figures are so startlingly high.

“While these figures are just the raw data, behind each of these stats there is a personal story.  I want to know why it’s considered reasonable for thousands of people to be leaving hospital at such anti-social hours.  I am particularly worried that many of these patients could be elderly or vulnerable.

“There are sometimes valid reasons for patients to be released from hospitals in the middle of the night.  However, these figures are exceptionally high and I am concerned that the well-known pressure on beds could be leading to people being discharged at inappropriate times.

“The current system for collating this important data isn’t fit for purpose.  Hospitals aren’t properly recording why and when patients are being discharged. 

“This is potentially a major problem that is slipping under the radar. We are calling on the Welsh Labour Government to ensure this data is recorded accurately and thoroughly so we can see the extent of the problem.”  

Other Welsh health board figures for overnight patient discharges are:

* Abertawe Bro Morgannwg UHB – 3,177

* Aneurin Bevan HB – 2,907

* Cwm Taf HB – 3,831

* Hywel Dda HB – 3,105

* Powys Teaching HB – 10

Police operation snares suspected paedophiles

North Wales Police has been working with the National Crime Agency (NCA) on an "unprecedented" six-month operation which has led to the arrest of 660 suspected paedophiles across the UK.

 

Nationally more than 400 children have been safeguarded.

 

In North Wales eight people have been arrested as a result of this operation which has involved forces across the UK.

 

Of the 660, 39 people were Registered Sex Offenders but the majority of those arrested had not previously come to law enforcement’s attention.

 

The operation targeted people accessing indecent images of children online. It has stayed covert till today in order to protect children, identify offenders and secure evidence. The NCA and its partners are not revealing the methods they used to track down suspects so that they can use the same tactics again in the future.

 

Charging decisions are awaited in most cases but so far charges brought range from possessing indecent images of children to serious sexual assault.

 

Detective Chief Superintendent Wayne Jones said: "North Wales Police have been actively working with the National Crime Agency on this operation for some time, in order to target people who access indecent images of children online.

“Our primary objective has been to protect children from harm, identify offenders and secure evidence. We will continue to work covertly to catch those people who engage in such offences.

 

“Offenders may feel safe at home, thinking they can anonymously access the internet to view indecent images online. They should be absolutely clear that this is not the case as the operation shows. We will continue to do all we can to identify these people, arrest them and protect children."

 

North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Winston Roddick CB QC said: "I have made a clear commitment in my Crime and Police Plan to the continued development of proactive capability in identifying perpetrators of child sexual exploitation, including those accessing indecent images of children through the internet.

 

"The work undertaken by the National Crime Agency is a tremendous step forward in tackling such crimes, as is the subsequent work undertaken locally by North Wales Police.

 

"The perpetrators of these terrible crimes can't remain hidden forever and this work demonstrates the benefits of collectively working to protect children from harm. We will continue to root them out and bring them to justice.

 

NCA Deputy Director General Phil Gormley said: “This is the first time the UK has had the capability to coordinate a single targeted operation of this nature. Over the past six months we have seen unprecedented levels of cooperation to deliver this result.

 

“Our aim was to protect children who were victims of, or might be at risk of, sexual exploitation. A child is victimised not only when they are abused and an image is taken. They are re-victimised every time that image is viewed by someone.

 

“Some of the people who start by accessing indecent images online go on to abuse children directly. So the operation is not only about catching people who have already offended – it is about influencing potential offenders before they cross that line

 

“We want those offenders to know that the internet is not a safe anonymous space for accessing indecent images, that they leave a digital footprint, and that law enforcement will find it."

Shoplifting hotspots revealed

The BBC says sit has discovered that Asda in Wrexham has recorded the highest level of shoplifting of any store in Wales over the past three years with 350 offences

Fore more details, see:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-28313861

Police launch summer School Watch scheme

With the school holidays about to begin, a scheme which encourages people to keep a close eye on their local school has been launched across Conwy and Denbighshire.

 

Keeping schools free from crime at all times of the year but particularly during school holidays is the main aim of School Watch.

 

Now in its 10th year, it encourages parents, residents, and teachers as well as the emergency services and the local authorities to work together to keep schools and their immediate surrounding areas safe, free from crime and anti-social behaviour.

 

Recently, pupils at Ysgol Pant Yr Rhedyn in Llanfairfechan had the opportunity to learn a little more about the scheme and also about the work of police and their partners as School Watch was launched in the county of Conwy.

 

The importance of keeping safe over the summer holidays was also stressed to the youngsters who also had an opportunity to explore a number of emergency service vehicles that had been taken along especially for the launch.

 

Year seven and eight pupils at Prestatyn High School also had the same valuable insight when the scheme was launched on Wednesday, July 2, at the school for Denbighshire.

 

The work is being undertaken by North Wales Police as part of the Summer Safety campaign.

 

Ifan Hughes, Divisional Crime Reduction Manager said: “We hope that everyone will continue to support School Watch which has been running for a number of years.

 

* Police officers visit a school.

“Sadly, school buildings can become a target for vandalism and graffiti over the summer beak and we are calling on residents who live nearby and anyone who sees any suspicious activity around a school to please support us by getting in touch on 101 or anonymously via Crimestoppers.”

 

Carly Wilson, Planning & Resources Manager said: “Denbighshire are proud to be working with North Wales Police on such a positive initiative. Our schools buildings are a valuable resource for our pupils and we will support any measures that can be taken to protect them"

 

Cllr Wyn Jones, Conwy Council’s Cabinet Member for Lifelong Learning & Skills said: “With the help of parents and the local community through the School Watch campaign we can prevent criminal damage to our schools and reduce the possibility of disruption to our pupils and their education.”

 

“We rely on members of the public for their support,” added Ifan Hughes.” We ask people that if they live near or overlook a school and see anything suspicious to please report it.”

 

Leaflets and posters have been distributed throughout North Wales, reminding the public of the scheme which also aims to help stamp out mindless acts which not only affects the school, but the whole community.

 

Anyone who witnesses suspicious behaviour in or around schools or at school buildings is urged to contact North Wales Police. If you witness a crime in progress always dial 999. Non-emergency calls should be made to 101 or via Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Lesotho athletes visit Castell Dinas Bran

 

* The Lesotho team by giant Flags on the hill.

 

 

* Maelor School Pupils meet the Lesotho athletes top of the hill to sing national anthems.

The Lesotho Commonwealth Games team went up to Castell Dinas Bran on the hillside above Llangollen yesterday (Monday) with 450 pupils and staff from The Maelor School in Penley.

They are staying at  Glyndŵr University for their Commonwealth Games pre-training.

The walk was part of the Maelor's long-standing educational link with a school in Lesotho and the athletes went along to support the bond between Wales and Lesotho.

Illegal tobacco found in sniffer dog raids

SNIFFER dogs have been helping detect stores of illegal tobacco in raids carried out by Denbighshire’s Trading Standards Officers.  

Officers were assisted by North Wales Police and representatives Imperial Tobacco and local company, Wagtail UK Ltd of Mostyn, Flintshire, provided trained tobacco detection dogs.

Two premises, which have not been identified, were visited and almost 3,000 cigarettes and over 5 kg of rolling tobacco were found, worth an estimated £2,000.  The haul included possible counterfeit and illicit tobacco products which cannot be legally sold in the UK.

The low price and easy availability of illegal tobacco encourages people to keep smoking, and children and young people are often targeted by unscrupulous traders.

The dogs help to find tobacco which traders often conceal in unusual places such as hidden compartments and seemingly-empty product boxes.

David Smith, Lead Member for Public Realm said: "We react to intelligence received from the public, and the success of this week's operation shows that even the smallest piece of intelligence can make all the difference.  

"Smoking is one of the biggest causes of ill health and illicit tobacco makes a serious issue worse because the controls on safety standards, which apply to legitimate traders, are not carried out.  

"This type of trade also affects the economy as a whole: locally, retailers cannot trade fairly and are disadvantaged and in terms of the wider economy, duty is not being paid and this has an impact on all of our services.  

"The Council is committed to developing the local economy and therefore we will work to ensure all businesses can operate on a level playing field."

Emlyn Jones, Public Protection Manager added: "These trained tobacco detection dogs are a valuable tool in helping us locate hidden illegal tobacco.  People should think twice about buying from such sources as the trade is unregulated with no controls on the manufacture and distribution of the product and there is often links to other illegal activity.  This matter will now be fully investigated before deciding on any action."

PC Les Jones, the Denbighshire Partnerships Officer with North Wales Police, said: “Not only does this trade harm the local community it often has links to wider criminal activity.  We shall therefore continue to work with our partners to disrupt this illegal trade.  

Anyone with information about the sale of illegal tobacco should call the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 03454 04 05 06 (03454 04 05 05 for Welsh language) or the confidential Crimestoppers hotline on 0800 555 111. 

Llangollen's sunshine festival was a huge hit

* A group from Belarus on the big opening day parade last Monday.

THIS year’s “sunshine eisteddfod” at Llangollen has been a big hit both artistically and as a crowd pleaser, says its delighted Music Director.

 

As temperatures soared throughout the week over 22,000 people from across the globe came flocking to the international musical festival to enjoy a packed programme of star-spangled evening concerts and top-class choral and dance competitions.

 

Music Director Eilir Owen Griffiths said the evening concerts, which ranged from a stunning performance of the Sondheim musical Sweeney Todd starring opera legend Bryn Terfel to a foot-stomping show by iconic rockers Status Quo, were among the best to be staged during his three years at the helm of the festival’s entertainments programme.

 

“Sweeney Todd, which was our eisteddfod opener on Monday, was quite an undertaking and meant pulling in all kinds of people to make it happen but everyone worked together fantastically well and I’m very pleased with how it went and was received by the audience,” he said.

 

“The Caro Emerald concert on Thursday evening was also something very special.

“She completely held the audience for the whole 90 minutes of her performance and then got people up on their feet singing and clapping along.

 

“As with everything during the week - concerts and competitions - the backstage crew did a remarkable job.

 

“Our volunteers make magic things happen.

 

“Noah Stewart, both during the evening concert on Wednesday and when he sang on Thursday as our day president, was magnificent.

 

“He embraced the eisteddfod and the eisteddfod embraced him because he shows so much enthusiasm and passion.”

 

Eilir said that another highlight of the evening concerts came on Friday when the eisteddfod production team worked with the Wales Millennium Centre, and the opera company Igugu Le Kapa and the Bloemfontein Male Voice Choir, both from South Africa, to present Spirit of Unity.

 

Eilir said: “The concert showed Llangollen’s spirit of international co-operation at its very best and we had South Africa side by side with Wales.

 

“It sent the audience away with smiles on their faces because they knew they had felt something at the concert.

 

“This series of concerts is the one of which I am most proud."

 

Eilir also had warm praise for the wide range of singing and dance competitions which ran throughout the week.

 

He said: “I was very impressed with the standard we saw being achieved in all the competitions and the children’s choirs in particular were just amazing.

 

“I believe that some of the younger ones were good enough to be in our Choir of the World Competition.

 

The problems faced this year by a number of overseas groups in obtaining visas to travel to the eisteddfod was highlighted a number of times during the week, first by eisteddfod president Terry Waite CBE and then by Wednesday’s day president The Rev Aneurin Owen, from Bro Aled, who said in his address that it can often be easier for soldiers of terror to travel around the world than it is for eisteddfod competitors to obtain visas.

 

Eilir added: “We’ve been lucky that the sun’s been with us all the week and it’s definitely been the sunshine eisteddfod.

 

“This year we put extra effort into bringing the field alive, offering something for everyone in terms of entertainment and stalls."

 

Eisteddfod chairman Gethin Davies said: “It’s been a tremendous week, which has been helped by the perfect weather.

 

“The quality of the competitions has been quite outstanding and the evening concerts have been amazing. When it came to their variety they had something for everybody.

 

“It is difficult to imagine that another festival anywhere would be able to offer anything similar.

 

“It is indicative of Llangollen that one of our guest performers, the American opera star Noah Stewart, was absolutely bowled over by the friendliness and fun of the whole event as well as its high standards.”