August 20, 2026 - 226 views
People across North Wales are being promised a new approach to tackling NHS waiting times after the latest figures highlighted continuing pressure on emergency departments and planned care.
The Welsh Government has acknowledged that NHS performance is not where it should be, with Health and Care Minister Mabon ap Gwynfor describing the latest figures as “stark” and saying people in Wales are still waiting too long for emergency care.
The figures show that more than 104,000 attendances were recorded at emergency departments across Wales in July, an average of 3,357 every day – the highest daily figure on record.
For North Wales, the figures will be closely watched by patients and families who have experienced long waits at the region's emergency departments.
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board operates emergency departments at Ysbyty Gwynedd, Glan Clwyd Hospital and Wrexham Maelor Hospital, serving a population of more than 700,000 across a large and predominantly rural area.
The health board has itself acknowledged the scale of the challenge facing urgent and emergency care in North Wales.
Its latest annual review says its emergency departments received more than 179,000 attendances during 2024/25, equivalent to almost 500 each day, while nearly 40,000 patients waited for longer than four hours.
Betsi Cadwaladr says delayed discharges are one of the factors contributing to pressure, with patients who are medically fit to leave sometimes remaining in hospital because care packages, care home places or other arrangements have not yet been secured. This can leave beds occupied and contribute to delays in admitting patients from emergency departments.
The situation at Glan Clwyd has attracted particular scrutiny this year.
Following an unannounced inspection in May, Healthcare Inspectorate Wales designated the hospital's Emergency Department as a Service Requiring Significant Improvement, citing concerns including overcrowding, patient safety, leadership and the experience of people waiting for care.
Betsi Cadwaladr accepted the findings and said immediate action was being taken to reduce overcrowding, strengthen patient safety and improve leadership and oversight. The health board also said it was developing plans to strengthen staffing across emergency departments in North Wales.
The problems extend beyond emergency departments.
Betsi Cadwaladr says demand for emergency services, diagnostics and outpatient care remained exceptionally high during 2025/26, although there has been progress in reducing some of the longest planned-care waits.
The number of patients waiting more than two years for treatment fell by 63% during the year, while the health board reported that no patients were waiting longer than four years by the end of March.
The latest Welsh Government figures come as Mabon ap Gwynfor says tackling the waiting-list backlog is his “absolute number one priority.”
The minister has already announced an additional £145 million for the NHS and says he will set out a plan in the coming weeks explaining how the money will be used to tackle waiting lists and waiting times.
He says the approach will represent a fundamental change rather than “more of the same”, with the aim of getting people seen more quickly, reducing waiting lists and keeping them down.
The minister also paid tribute to NHS and social care staff working under considerable pressure, saying reducing that pressure and giving staff the support and systems they need would be an important part of the new plan.
For North Wales, that commitment will be closely scrutinised.
Betsi Cadwaladr remains under the highest level of Welsh Government intervention, although the health board has made progress in a number of areas. Its own 2026 annual report says further improvement is still required to provide consistent, high-quality services and improve timely access, patient experience and clinical outcomes.
There are also signs of targeted improvements. In July, Betsi Cadwaladr announced a new approach to oral surgery at Tŷ Nerys on the Glan Clwyd site, allowing selected procedures to be carried out outside the main hospital theatres and helping to reduce cancellations caused by pressure on acute services.
But the underlying challenge remains substantial.
North Wales has an older population than the Welsh average and includes large rural communities, while its health services also face additional seasonal pressures from the region's popularity with visitors. Betsi Cadwaladr warns that its emergency departments can become particularly busy at peak times.
For patients across Conwy, Denbighshire, Gwynedd, Anglesey, Flintshire and Wrexham, the question will be whether the promised new investment and approach can translate into shorter waits and more reliable access to care.
Mabon ap Gwynfor says the goal is to create an NHS where people are seen and treated much more quickly than they are today.
For North Wales, where emergency care and waiting times have been a major concern for patients and communities, the coming months will provide a crucial test of whether that ambition can be delivered.
