This week, the Health and Social Care Team (HASC) had the privilege of meeting with service leads from Swansea Bay and Powys Health Boards in Wales. These meetings focused on how the health boards are utilising their funding to develop services that will support individuals with ME/CFS, long COVID, fibromyalgia, weight management, and fatigue.
We are pleased to report that the MEA has now met with all six Welsh Health Boards. We have been impressed with the commitment and thoroughness of the services being implemented. The Welsh Health Boards are demonstrating a strong dedication to meeting the needs of their local communities with comprehensive and interdisciplinary services.
A key strength of these Welsh services is their ability to provide integrated care across multiple conditions, including close collaboration between healthcare professionals. This approach, combined with the adequate funding provided to the health boards, enables more robust and well-rounded patient support.
What we’ve learned from these discussions is incredibly valuable, and we hope to use these insights to help inform and guide commissioners and service leads in England. The examples set by Welsh colleagues offer a promising blueprint for improving services across the UK, and we look forward to sharing these lessons with the wider community.