Thank you for contacting me about support for people living with Crohn’s and Colitis and to invite me to attend the Crohn’s and Colitis UK Awareness Week drop-in event in the Senedd.
As you have outlined, research shows more than half a million people could be living with Chron’s Disease or Ulcerative Colitis in the UK. Reducing the time to diagnosis is crucial for improving outcomes for these conditions.
I know that Crohn’s and Colitis UK have developed a symptom checker app in partnership with GPs and patients. To date, 120,000 people have accessed the symptom checker and it is helping people to recognise when to contact their GP about symptoms that may be caused by Crohn’s, Colitis or Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).
As you may be aware, healthcare laws and policies are devolved to the Welsh Government. A detailed review of IBD services in Wales was completed it 2020. It found a number of challenges, such as variation in practice between health board services, workforce pressures, and difficulty accessing IBD teams and support services.
Accessing timely diagnosis and treatment starts with getting an appointment with a GP. Under Labour nearly a fifth of GP practices in Wales have closed since 2012. Our Welsh NHS is critically understaffed due to 25 years of Labour under-resourcing our health service with real terms cuts to fund their vanity projects.
Optional: I endeavour to attend/attended the event on 5th December and appreciate the opportunity to meet with patients, healthcare professionals and representatives from the Crohn’s and Colitis UK team, to learn more about more about the conditions and what needs to be done to ensure people living with Crohn’s, Colitis, and IBD have access to the care they need.
