Betsi Cadwaladr vice chair Dr Lyndon Miles steps down

A third senior figure at Wales' largest NHS organisation has stood down following a damning report on its "significant management failings".

The chairman and chief executive of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board went last week after health and audit watchdogs found a range of problems.

BCUHB runs NHS services in the six counties of north Wales with a budget of around £1.2bn.

Vice-chair Dr Lyndon Miles becomes the third board member to leave.

Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (HIW) and the Wales Audit Office (WAO) found a series of problems at the health board, which runs Ysbyty Gwynedd, Glan Clwyd and Wrexham Maelor hospitals.

They included finding that the relationship between chairman Prof Merfyn Jones and chief executive Mary Burrows had broken down and compromised the organisation.

The issues include:

• Management failings, which are contributing to significant risks with hospital infections such as c.dificile being under-reported.

• Big financial problems with the health board managing to avoid overspending sometimes only by delaying operations and letting waiting lists get longer.

• Bosses have failed to plan ahead for big changes that are needed to hospital services with no clear plan for which services might be cut or reorganised.

• Leadership at the board was "fundamentally compromised" with the relationship between the chairman and chief executive breaking down.

A spokesperson for Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board said: "We can confirm that the vice-chairman Dr Lyndon Miles has submitted his resignation to the minister."

Last week, Health Minister Mark Drakeford said the health board still faced "fundamental challenges".

He told BBC Wales that replacing two individuals would not be enough in itself to restore public confidence.

The minister said the board faced a "much bigger job" in changing the culture of the way it works.