MORE needs to be done to tackle “abysmal” waiting times in the Welsh NHS, it has been warned, as the Welsh Government praises “heroic” staff efforts as the country saw the lowest increase in waiting times since the beginning of the pandemic.

The figures, published last week by the Welsh Government, show that waiting times for diagnosis, therapy, waiting times in accident and emergency departments and ambulance response times all remain significantly above target.

But the Welsh Government said “thanks to the heroic efforts of our NHS staff we only saw the waiting lists increase by 0.2 per cent in December, the lowest increase since the start of the pandemic.”

The Welsh Government said it will “publish a detailed plan on how we will tackle the waiting times for patients whose treatment has been delayed by the pandemic” in April, but opposition parties called the delay “disappointing.”

Plaid Cymru’s spokesperson for health and care, Rhun ap Iorwerth MS said: “The evidence tells us that there is less pressure on our NHS from coronavirus, and yet Welsh Government has been too slow to react to this good news.

“When faced with such a time-sensitive task as getting the NHS back on track, there is no time to waste.

“Undoubtedly the pandemic has had a massive impact on the ability of our NHS to diagnose and treat patients – the waiting times now are beyond shocking. “But they weren’t good enough before the pandemic.

“Welsh Government should be ready with a recovery plan now, just as they should have had a plan in place before the pandemic.

“April is too long to wait for such an important matter.”

Mid and West Wales MS and Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dodds said: “These figures truly are abysmal and make for harrowing reading.

“We urgently need action to reduce waiting times and make sure patients are getting the care they need when they need it.”

Montgomeryshire MS and Shadow Health Minister Russell George MS said: “Every month, these figures only go to show how much work there is to be done to get our national health service into a fit state that works for patients and staff.”

A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “Demanding winter pressures, the Omicron wave and the need to support the vaccination programme continued to place considerable strain on the NHS in December.

“These challenges led to the postponement of a number of appointments and planned treatments across Wales and some people were waiting longer for treatment than we would like.

“We want to thank our healthcare workforce for delivering vast amounts of booster vaccinations while continuing to provide high-quality care to hundreds of thousands of patients each month.