English: Thank you, Buffy, for opening this debate. I would like to begin by saying that the Welsh Conservatives wholeheartedly support the extension of section 25B of the Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Act 2016 to include community nursing and mental health in-patient settings. We support this extension because it is clear to us that the situation nurses find themselves in is both unacceptable and, in the long term, completely unsustainable for the profession. Every week, nurses give the Welsh NHS an additional 67,780 hours, equivalent to an extra 1,807 nurses. This essentially means that nurses are being systematically overworked by health boards who are ultimately cutting corners by not employing enough nurses for patient care. Long term, this is detrimental to the mental and physical health of nurses, which then creates a higher risk of patient care being compromised, and has a huge knock-on effect on the family life of nurses as they spend more and more time away from their family, working longer and longer shifts. It creates a negative impression that nursing is a poor career choice. I was honestly shocked by the number of cases at Welsh health boards where understaffing has led to deep concerns about patient safety, and has even led to injury and death - from a shortage of midwives in Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board's maternity services, where an independent review found that a third of stillbirths could have been prevented with proper care and treatment, to shortages in Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board's vascular and emergency services, where the Royal College of Surgeons found that there were immediate operational pressures due to consultant availability and nurse staffing within the health board. It is clear that severe staffing pressures are ongoing and are leading to serious deficiencies in care. Turning to mental health, the Ockenden report into Tawel Fan found that some patients had experienced a loss of dignity, being left in urine-soaked sheets or found wandering the ward unsupervised. Similarly, the Holden report into the Hergest unit in north Wales found that inadequate staffing meant that the needs of patients in the unit were not met, and this resulted in patient dignity and safety being compromised. The Welsh Conservative group's own research has highlighted unsafe staffing levels in Wales's accident and emergency units, and it is clear that the Welsh NHS workforce is continuing to face burnout after several years of the pandemic, alongside increasing waiting lists and pressures in emergency care. I, like many others, believe that the Welsh Government should provide more support in this area, and focus efforts to increase student places, and ultimately support the larger NHS workforce. As the Minister will know, Wales is the only nation of the UK that does not publish national statistics for nursing vacancies in Wales, leaving many to believe that there is something to hide. But Members will be interested to know that figures given to me by the Royal College of Nursing Cymru, show that there were 2,900 nursing vacancies in 2021-22, costing the Welsh NHS £133.4 million in emergency nursing - an increase of 41 per cent from the previous financial year. And, as my colleague, Buffy Williams has also mentioned, the RCN found that there were an additional 144 full-time equivalent nurses and 597 full-time healthcare support workers on section 25B wards in November 2020, compared to March 2018, which was before section 25B came into force. This shows that extending the section 25B on nurse staffing levels will have a major positive impact. I think all Members here will agree with me that failing to extend section 25B is highly unacceptable. And I therefore urge all Members here to support the motion. Thank you.
Welsh: Diolch, Buffy, am agor y ddadl hon. Hoffwn ddechrau drwy ddweud bod y Ceidwadwyr Cymreig yn llwyr gefnogi ymestyn Adran 25B o Ddeddf Lefelau Staff Nyrsio (Cymru) 2016 i gynnwys lleoliadau nyrsio cymunedol ac iechyd meddwl i gleifion mewnol. Rydym yn cefnogi ymestyn oherwydd mae'n amlwg i ni fod y sefyllfa y mae nyrsys yn cael eu rhoi ynddi'n annerbyniol ac yn y tymor hir, yn gwbl anghynaladwy i'r proffesiwn. Bob wythnos, mae nyrsys yn gweithio 67,780 o oriau ychwanegol i GIG Cymru, sy'n gyfystyr â 1,807 o nyrsys ychwanegol. Yn y bôn golyga fod nyrsys yn cael eu gorweithio'n systematig gan fyrddau iechyd sy'n torri corneli yn y pen draw drwy beidio â chyflogi digon o nyrsys ar gyfer gofal cleifion. Yn y tymor hir, mae hyn yn niweidiol i iechyd meddwl ac iechyd corfforol nyrsys, sydd wedyn yn creu risg uwch y bydd gofal cleifion yn cael ei beryglu, ac yn cael sgil-effaith enfawr ar fywyd teuluol nyrsys wrth iddynt dreulio mwy a mwy o amser oddi wrth eu teuluoedd, yn gweithio shifftiau hwy o hyd. Mae'n creu argraff negyddol fod nyrsio'n ddewis gwael fel gyrfa. Cefais fy synnu'n wirioneddol gan y nifer o achosion ym myrddau iechyd Cymru lle mae prinder staff wedi arwain at bryderon dwfn ynglŷn â diogelwch cleifion, a hyd yn oed wedi arwain at anafiadau a marwolaethau - o brinder bydwragedd yng ngwasanaethau mamolaeth Bwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Cwm Taf Morgannwg, lle canfu adolygiad annibynnol y gallai traean o farw-enedigaethau fod wedi cael eu hatal gyda gofal a thriniaeth briodol, i brinder yng ngwasanaethau fasgwlaidd a gwasanaethau brys Bwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Betsi Cadwaladr, lle canfu Coleg Brenhinol y Llawfeddygon bwysau gweithredol uniongyrchol yn sgil argaeledd meddygon ymgynghorol a staff nyrsio o fewn y bwrdd iechyd. Mae'n amlwg fod pwysau staffio difrifol yn parhau ac yn arwain at ddiffygion difrifol mewn gofal. Gan droi at iechyd meddwl, canfu adroddiad Ockenden ar Tawel Fan fod rhai cleifion wedi profi colli urddas, wedi cael eu gadael mewn cynfasau gwlyb gan wrin neu wedi'u canfod yn crwydro'r ward heb oruchwyliaeth. Yn yr un modd, canfu adroddiad Holden ar uned Hergest yng ngogledd Cymru fod lefelau staffio annigonol yn golygu na chafodd anghenion cleifion yn yr uned eu diwallu, ac arweiniodd hyn at beryglu urddas a diogelwch cleifion. Mae ymchwil grŵp y Ceidwadwyr Cymreig eu hunain wedi tynnu sylw at lefelau staffio anniogel yn unedau damweiniau ac achosion brys Cymru, ac mae'n amlwg fod gweithlu GIG Cymru yn parhau i wynebu gorflinder ar ôl sawl blwyddyn o'r pandemig, ochr yn ochr â rhestrau aros cynyddol a phwysau mewn gofal brys. Rwyf fi, fel llawer o bobl eraill, yn credu y dylai Llywodraeth Cymru ddarparu mwy o gefnogaeth yn y maes hwn, a chanolbwyntio ymdrechion ar gynyddu lleoedd i fyfyrwyr, a chefnogi gweithlu mwy y GIG yn y pen draw. Fel y bydd y Gweinidog yn gwybod, Cymru yw'r unig wlad yn y DU nad yw'n cyhoeddi ystadegau cenedlaethol ar gyfer swyddi nyrsio gwag yng Nghymru, sy'n gwneud i lawer gredu bod rhywbeth i'w guddio. Ond bydd o ddiddordeb i'r Aelodau glywed bod ffigurau a roddwyd i mi gan Goleg Nyrsio Brenhinol Cymru yn dangos bod 2,900 o swyddi nyrsio gwag yn 2021-22, gan gostio £133.4 miliwn i GIG Cymru mewn nyrsio brys - cynnydd o 41 y cant o'r flwyddyn ariannol flaenorol. Ac fel y soniodd fy nghyd-Aelod Buffy Williams hefyd, canfu'r Coleg Nyrsio Brenhinol fod 144 o nyrsys cyfwerth ag amser llawn ychwanegol a 597 o weithwyr cymorth gofal iechyd amser llawn ar wardiau adran 25B ym mis Tachwedd 2020, o'i gymharu â mis Mawrth 2018, a oedd cyn i adran 25B ddod i rym. Mae hyn yn dangos y bydd ymestyn adran 25B ar lefelau staff nyrsio'n cael effaith gadarnhaol bwysig. Rwy'n credu y bydd pob Aelod yma yn cytuno â mi y byddai'n annerbyniol iawn inni beidio ag ymestyn adran 25B. Ac rwy'n annog pob Aelod yma felly i gefnogi'r cynnig. Diolch.