A CORONER is to consider calling for a public inquiry into the number of deaths among vascular patients in North Wales.

At a hearing in Ruthin John Gittins, chief coroner for North Wales East and Central, said that next week (Tuesday, 9) he would be opening inquests into the deaths of four patients who died at Glan Clwyd Hospital, Bodelwyddan, after undergoing vascular surgery.

The four referred to him were among 44 cases reviewed by the Royal College of Surgeons who investigated the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board service (BCUHB).

In their report, published in January, 2022, they said they found serious deficiencies in the standard of care, record-keeping and communication.

They made nine recommendations, five of them urgent, “to address patient safety risks."

Yesterday's hearing was a pre-inquest hearing in the case of 65-year-old Robert Wyn Jones from Botwnnog, near Pwllheli, who died after surgery at Glan Clwyd Hospital in July, 2019.

But the coroner said that it now needed to be considered in the light of the four cases referred to him in which he had decided that inquests were necessary.

One of the aspects he would need to look at, he said, would be the decision by the health board to centralise the vascular service at Bodelwyddan.

Barrister Christian Howells, representing Mr Jones’s family, said that if it was found that there was enough commonality between his case and the four others then it made sense for all five to be considered together.

Though that could to further delay, Mr Jones’s sister would prefer there to be a thorough investigation, he said.

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Mr Howells said the Welsh Government could be considered an interested party in the matter as it had placed the Health Board in special measures and then decided to withdraw it before reinstating it.

Adjourning the matter, Mr Gittins said he would need to consider whether to issue a Prevention of Future Deaths report though he was aware that action had been taken to address the problems.

He said he would examine the legislation concerning ways of calling on the Welsh Government to instigate a public inquiry and would also decide whether to combine Mr Jones’s inquest with the other four.

He told solicitor Trish Gaskell, for the Health Board: “I will need evidence from an extremely high level as to what on earth has gone on and what is going on.”