Covid: Hospitals in Wales' hardest-hit area pause some urgent surgery

Some 13 ambulances queued outside the Royal Glamorgan Hospital hospital's A&E department on Saturday

Hospitals in the area with Wales and England's worst Covid death rates are only coping by postponing urgent surgery such as cancer operations.

Cwm Taf Morgannwg had already suspended some non-emergency services but the boss of the health board said they have now paused some urgent procedures.

Cwm Taf covers Rhondda Cynon Taf and Merthyr Tydfil, which have the highest and second highest Covid death rates.

"It's tough times," said Cwm Taf's medical director Nick Lyons.

Health Minister Vaughan Gething said he "would not be surprised" if other health boards were forced to do the same soon, if case rates did not come down.

"There is real harm being done... because of the level of hospital admissions," he said.

"Our critical care units are at 150% of their capacity and that has very real consequences.

"It reinforces why all of us need to do the right thing in reducing our contacts with other people and follow the rules, otherwise greater harm will be caused."

The news comes as NHS bosses said the number of Covid patients in Welsh hospitals is double April's peak.

On Thursday, Public Health Wales (PHW) said a further 54 people had died with coronavirus in Wales, taking the total number of deaths since the start of the pandemic to 4,117.

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Mr Lyons said on Wednesday night their field hospital Ysbyty Seren in Bridgend had 74 patients, people they "wouldn't have been able to accommodate within our usual hospitals".

"We are coping, but that's coping because we've been cancelling urgent surgery.

"We even had to cancel some cancer surgery over the last few weeks," Mr Lyons told BBC Radio Wales.

"My heart goes out to families and to patients with all the stress and the worry that gives.

"It's tough times and we're all in it together, and we do see that optimism, that glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel but it's hard."

'Absolute tragedy'

Nearly half of hospital beds in the health board - which covers Bridgend, Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf- are taken up with Covid-19 patients, including 31 in critical care or on ventilation.

They outnumber those in critical care with other conditions by three to one.

Latest NHS Wales figures show 2,806 hospital patients in Wales with Covid-19 - 35% of all patients. This is twice the proportion in May.

In Rhondda Cynon Taf, the Covid death rate is 283.9 per 100,000 population - followed by Merthyr Tydfil where the death rate is 253.6.

"It's an absolute tragedy for the families and the loved ones and very sobering," said Mr Lyons.

"We're coping but only because of the dedication of our staff, and it's immensely humbling to see people giving up their spare time coming in doing extra shifts, but the toll on them is immense.

"In practice our hospitals are full and although we are coping that we're only coping because we've cancelled all but the most urgent surgery.

"We've redeployed staff who've been incredibly flexible from places they normally work such as outpatients."

The health board oversees three hospitals - Prince Charles Hospital in Merthyr Tydfil, Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend and the Royal Glamorgan in Rhondda Cynon Taf.

A nurse at Royal Glamorgan Hospital, near Llantrisant, said earlier this week how she felt "overwhelming fear" as 13 ambulances queued outside her hospital's A&E department.