Health Minister Edwina Hart, who was greeted by  placard carrying midwives when she visited the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport recently, has agreed to look into a series of complaints about low morale in the NHS in Gwent.She says it's an unhealthy situation and needs to be resolved.

Newport West AM Rosemary Butler reminded the minister about the midwives' concerns at question time in the Assembly. She and Edwina Hart had both visited the hospital to look at improvements in maternity services there.

But they were greeted by demonstrating midwives who are still concerned about staff restructuring at the hospital.

Mrs Butler said at Assembly question time that the staff had appreciated her visit.

"However, I think that if we are to retain experienced and dedicated medical staff  through continuing professional development and good working conditions, we have to make sure, above all, that  they feel valued."

Mrs Hart replied:

I have had a number of complaints from AMs about staff relationships within the Gwent Area Health Trust recently.I understand these complaints have been coupled with a massive drop in staff satisfaction survey results this year, and I wish to obtain a very clear picture of the situation in Gwent."

She went on to say that she had asked David Jenkins, a senior health adviser to the Assembly Government, to go to the Gwent trust and look at the issues from both the management and the trade union side.

"We're talking about midwives, we're talking about community nurses and mental health workers.I don't think this is a healthy situation and I want it to be resolved," she said.

Mrs Butler later welcomed the Minister's intervention and hoped that the issues which seem to exist between health staff and their employers could be ironed out as quickly as possible, for the sake of both the staff and their patients.

April 9, 2008