AMBULANCE workers have welcomed the Welsh government’s announcement of a review into response targets for 999 calls.

Unison Cymru Wales was responding today to cabinet secretary for health Jeremy Miles’s statement to the Senedd on Tuesday announcing the review.

Unison Welsh Ambulance branch secretary Henry Garrard said: “All ambulance staff, from call centres to front-line resources, are focused on saving lives and providing the best possible care to those in desperate need.

“We welcome a review to see if systems can be improved for patients, which in turn would improve staff morale.

“Ambulance staff are working harder than ever before in very difficult conditions, and this takes a toll on the workforce’s welfare. 

“We want to continue working with the ambulance service and Welsh government to ensure they take account of our staff’s experience.”

The minister said he had accepted the Senedd health and social care committee report from August recommending a review of ambulance response targets.

Mr Miles told the Senedd that the review group would include health boards and the ambulance service and would report within six months.

“The group has been set up to review the appropriateness of emergency ambulance response measures and targets and it will consider the health committee’s recommendation in the context of our strategic priorities,” he said.

“The group will also consider the appropriateness of the national target in the context of the ongoing evolution of the trust’s clinical model.”

Unison regional organiser Mark Turner said: “You can’t fix the problems in the NHS without fixing social care.

“That requires investment and radical reform.”