EMERGENCY services at Gwent's flagship hospital are being "let down by those in charge" of the NHS, a local MP has alleged.

David Davies, who also serves as secretary of state for Wales in Rishi Sunak's cabinet, said the "blame" for shortcomings in a recent inspection report "certainly does not rest with" frontline health workers, and repeated calls for the Welsh Government to launch a public inquiry into patient care in Monmouthshire.

His comments follow the publication of a new Health Inspectorate Wales (HIW) report, compiled by inspectors after three surprise visits to the Grange University Hospital's emergency department in the summer.

Inspectors flagged a series of issues which need "immediate assurance" and said they were "not assured that the processes and systems in place were sufficient to ensure that patients consistently received an acceptable standard of care".

Aneurin Bevan University Health Board said it was "working hard to improve the experience of patients who visit the hospital".

Conservative MP for Monmouth Mr Davies said there were "mounting pressures" on the NHS in Wales "but the problem seems particularly acute in Gwent where patient complaints at the Grange continue to mount".

"I am accused of undermining doctors, nurses and paramedics every time I raise this issue," he added. "But the blame certainly does not rest with them. We are being let down by those in charge who are pretending the current situation is acceptable when it is clearly not - as this HIW report shows."

Mr Davies said questions need to be answered, including "why have there been delays in being seen in the emergency department once patients have arrived at the Grange" and "would it be worth re-opening minor injury clinics to reduce pressure on the Grange".

The Welsh Government said it was providing extra money to hospitals to improve emergency care.

A spokesperson said: "We continue to support improvement to emergency departments through a range of measures. We are providing an additional £25 million this year to transform urgent and emergency care services across Wales, with Aneurin Bevan University Health Board receiving £3 million.

"We have also provided an additional £260,000 to the health board for improvements to its emergency department waiting areas this winter."

What has the health board said about the report?

A spokesman for Aneurin Bevan University Health Board said: "We welcome the findings of the report and whilst we acknowledge and have responded to the concerns raised, we are encouraged that the report and the feedback received from HIW recognised the improvements made at the emergency department at The Grange University Hospital since the last report six months ago.

"We’re also pleased to see that the report highlights the hard work and dedication of our staff during periods of extreme pressure on our services, during which patients were treated with courtesy, dignity and respect. It is also reassuring that the report recognises good practice in terms of high levels of patient monitoring and safety at the emergency department.

"Feedback to our staff from HIW inspectors at the end of their visit was very encouraging and inspectors commented on the safe care and best practice that they witnessed in many areas. 

"Like all hospitals across Wales and the UK, The Grange University Hospital continues to face extraordinary challenges due to staff shortages, increased demand and the after effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on people’s health. We are working hard to improve the experience of patients who visit the hospital. We recognise there are issues around the emergency department’s waiting area, but we would like to reassure people that work is already underway to increase capacity in this area.

"HIW have also indicated that improvements to patient flow and waiting times are required, which we fully accept. Whilst this is a nationally recognised problem, caused by system-wide pressures across health and social care, we are working hard to improve patient flow and reduce waiting times. We have already introduced a closer partnership working initiative between emergency department staff and the Welsh Ambulance Service to improve ambulance handover times, as well as introduced a Same-Day Emergency Care Unit (SDEC) to offer eligible patients more timely care and to free up space in the emergency department.

"We’re incredibly thankful to our fantastic staff, who are committed to providing the best possible care under such sustained pressure."

Responding to Mr Davies' comments, a spokesperson for the health board said: "The pressures being experienced at The Grange University Hospital are not exclusive to Gwent and reflect the system-wide pressures across the Wales and the whole of the UK.

“Although we recognise there are areas for improvement relating to patient experience at The Grange University Hospital, we are reassured that the hospital offers safe care and treatment to patients as outlined in the recent HIW inspection report.

“Like all hospitals across Wales and the UK, The Grange University Hospital continues to face extraordinary challenges due to staff shortages, increased demand and the after effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on people’s health. We are working hard to improve the experience of patients who visit the hospital. We recognise there are issues around the Emergency Department’s waiting area, but we would like to reassure people that work is already underway to increase capacity in this area.

“We will continue to make changes to improve the experience of our patients at our Emergency Department, while continuing to provide safe urgent and emergency care to the people of Gwent. We would like to thank our hard working staff for their continued dedication to delivering the very best care to our patients.

“In relation to the comment around our Minor Injury Units, we have 4 across Gwent - 3 of which are open 24/7 and account for around 50 per cent of our total emergency attendances and contribute to the Health Board having the best 4 hour performance in Wales.

“In terms of waiting lists for elective care, the Health Board is working hard to reduce waiting times and private capacity has been used in some areas where appropriate. Despite the numbers of patients waiting being a significant concern, the Health Board currently has some of the lowest levels of long-waiting elective patients in Wales, which is facilitated by the new model of care in Gwent where there is greater separation of emergency and elective care.”