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| Signs hospitals are 'getting safer', says deputy chief medical officer | Signs hospitals are 'getting safer', says deputy chief medical officer |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| There are encouraging signs that Welsh hospitals are getting safer, according to Wales' deputy chief medical officer. | There are encouraging signs that Welsh hospitals are getting safer, according to Wales' deputy chief medical officer. |
| Dr Chris Jones was speaking as a new version of hospital death rates was published which take into account differences between Wales and England. | Dr Chris Jones was speaking as a new version of hospital death rates was published which take into account differences between Wales and England. |
| Figures from six hospitals with above-average death rates will be reviewed. | Figures from six hospitals with above-average death rates will be reviewed. |
| The review, by an independent expert, will be carried out to establish whether those higher figures need further investigation. | The review, by an independent expert, will be carried out to establish whether those higher figures need further investigation. |
| The hospitals are Neath Port Talbot, Prince Charles in Merthyr, Royal Glamorgan in Llantrisant, Singleton in Swansea, Glangwili Hospital in Carmarthen and Wrexham Maelor. | |
| Dr Jones said: "I think there is a whole lot of evidence that our hospitals are getting safer. | Dr Jones said: "I think there is a whole lot of evidence that our hospitals are getting safer. |
| "It's things like infection rates coming down... there are a number of measures which are direct measures of quality which show considerable improvement in recent years." | "It's things like infection rates coming down... there are a number of measures which are direct measures of quality which show considerable improvement in recent years." |
| The review will be carried out by Professor Stephen Palmer of Cardiff University. | The review will be carried out by Professor Stephen Palmer of Cardiff University. |
| Health Minister Mark Drakeford said: "The NHS in Wales needs reliable, high-quality clinical information so it can assess the quality of the services it offers, and make improvements where necessary." | Health Minister Mark Drakeford said: "The NHS in Wales needs reliable, high-quality clinical information so it can assess the quality of the services it offers, and make improvements where necessary." |
| In November, the medical director of the English NHS suggested persistently high death rates in Welsh hospitals should be investigated, in an email to his Welsh counterpart. | |
| Sir Bruce Keogh said data on rates in six Welsh hospitals was worrying but not adequate to "form a view". | |
| The Welsh government ruled out an inquiry and said data for England and Wales could not be compared. | |
| In the email, Sir Bruce offered assistance with an investigation, having recently held such an inquiry into 14 hospitals in England. | |
| Unnecessary deaths | |
| It was reported that no reply was received from the Welsh government. | |
| The statistics are part of a drive to make the NHS more transparent in the wake of the Stafford Hospital scandal. | |
| Neglect and abuse at Stafford Hospital led to hundreds of unnecessary deaths between 2005 and 2008 and prompted a public inquiry. | |
| It comes amid heightened tensions between the governments in London and Cardiff Bay over the performance of the Welsh NHS. | |
| Prime Minister David Cameron has repeatedly criticised the performance of the Welsh NHS and the Labour administration in Cardiff Bay during Prime Minister's Questions. |