THE Welsh Government will shortly be taking steps to try to persuade GPs to seek employment in rural west Wales, according to a Welsh Government minister.

Vaughan Gething, Cabinet secretary for health, well-being and sport, said Cardiff Bay would be bringing forward proposals for a national and international recruitment campaign to market NHS Wales as an attractive place to work.

“This includes work to recruit, train and retain GPs and other primary care professionals to address the issues faced across Wales, including in the Cardigan area,” he said.

“We will also continue to support the development of new models of care.”

Mr Gething was responding to a question from Mid and West AM Simon Thomas on what was being done to address the growing concern by Cardigan residents about GP services in the town.

“Issues such as a lack of GPs and the difficulty in getting an appointment are something that constituents raise with me on a regular basis,” said Mr Thomas.

“There is widespread concern in Cardigan but there are difficulties across my region.”

 In his reply, Mr Gething said Hywel Dda University Health Board had been “actively supporting and working” with GP practices to recruit additional GPs in what was a “challenging” recruitment market across the whole of the UK.

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