Sir, 

We have come to the end of the run of public meetings on hospital reconfiguration in Pembrokeshire.

Over several months now, I have been meeting doctors, nurses and patients to hear their views and in recent weeks have attended the public meetings organised by the Community Health Council and Local Health Board.

Views have been expressed in anger, in sadness and sometimes with good humour.  However, the message has been loud and it has been clear - that the people of Pembrokeshire are not willing to give up our district general hospital at Withybush. 

I think it is time for common sense to prevail.  Together with my AM colleague Tamsin Dunwoody from Preseli, I have secured extra time in the consultation and I have charged the local health board and the community health council to work together to work up another option - strengthening service delivery at Withybush. They have agreed to do that.

All of the meetings across Pembrokeshire attracted mammoth audiences - one was over a thousand. It is the biggest consultation Pembrokeshire has ever seen and in that context we must see it as a powerful expression of public participation. At every meeting, members of the audience said they were prepared to embrace change, but not at the expense of excellent, local services. And at every meeting audience members were prepared to stick up for each and every part of Pembrokeshire. That solidarity cannot be ignored.

The consultation is still ongoing, of course, and this is the opportunity for members of the public to write in with their views to the local health board, but also to copy them to me if they are willing. Please make your submission as detailed as possible because this is a unique opportunity to find out how the public in Pembrokeshire use our health service, and what their experience has been.

The next couple of months will be a period of diligent work by the health professionals - managers and doctors alike - to work up an option to strengthen Withybush. I hope that the public will continue to give their full support.

The voice of Pembrokeshire is stronger than ever. That is a good thing and I hope it will be a base upon which to build and strengthen our health service for future generations.   Christine Gwyther AM