AMBULANCE services in Wales come under the spotlight for the next four months in a review by an independent body set up to monitor standards of clinical care in England and Wales.

The Commission for Health Improvement (CHI) begins its 17-week inspection of the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust next week, and patients and members of the public will have the opportunity to comment on the state of the service.

The inspection is part of a rolling programme which involves CHI inspecting every NHS organisation in England and Wales.

The aim is to review each one every four years, looking at management, provision and quality of services, and identifying best practice and areas for improvement.

Several trusts and former health authorities in Wales have already been subject to review, including Gwent Healthcare Trust and Gwent Health Authority.

A series of meetings for individuals or small groups is being arranged across Wales so people may air their views. These will include one in Abergavenny on Wednesday, September 24.

The review will give an opportunity for the people of Gwent to voice a number of concerns about the service in the area. These include worries about response times, especially in rural Monmouthshire, and in Valleys areas such as Blaenau Gwent and northern Caerphilly.

Ambulance trust chief executive Don Page welcomed the review. "We are pleased to be involved in this initiative to review services to patients."

Ambulance service staff and organisations with an interest in the NHS will also be able to comment.

CHI chairman Dame Deirdre Hine said: "We want the NHS to see itself as the patients see it. Patients' experiences will be a key factor in assessing how healthy the NHS is."

l To arrange an appointment for the meeting in Abergavenny - all comments will be private and confidential, to send comments, or to get more information, telephone CHI on 0845 601 3012, quoting reference Welsh Ambulance Services.

Comments may also be e-mailed directly to: yourviews@chi.nhs.uk