No-one should spend Christmas waiting for care, says Powys politician

They’re not waiting for treatment, but for care.

Care that should be there to help them live safely and comfortably in their own homes.

Behind every number is a person and a family. 

A grandfather who should be dishing up dinner in his own kitchen. A wife longing to sit beside the tree, not under hospital lights. 

A son juggling shopping lists and hospital visits, wishing he could simply enjoy Christmas with his parents.

Our social care system is broken, and everyone can see it. 

Care workers are doing their verybest under impossible pressure, often for low pay and little recognition. 

Councils are struggling to recruit, care homes are closing, and hospitals are full of people who should be, and want to be, at home with their loved ones.

This is every bit as much a crisis for families and communities across Wales as it is for our NHS. 

When care breaks down, the whole system feels the strain. It means people left on wards who no longer need to be there, patients waiting in A&E who should be on those

wards, ambulances queuing outside instead of responding to new emergencies, and families left fearing what will happen if help doesn’t arrive in time.

The best gift the Welsh Government could give us this Christmas is a Social Care Rescue Package to turn things around. 

That means fair pay for carers, proper support for local councils, and real investment in community services so people can receive care where they

need it most, and for most, that means being cared for at home, surrounded by the people who matter to them.

The Welsh Government owes it to every family to get this right. Fixing social care will give people the dignity and compassion they deserve and will help families spend the time

together that truly matters. 

Because no one in Wales should spend Christmas in a hospital bed when they could be home, safe, loved, and where they belong.

Mid and West Wales Senedd Member Jane Dodds