IN TODAY’S Argus, health reporter Andy Rutherford writes of longer waits for treatment in the emergency departments of Gwent hospitals.

The most recent figures show the Royal Gwent Hospital treated 66.6 per cent of patients within four hours, while at Nevill Hall the figure was 87.4 per cent. The target is 96 per cent.

However, only a few days ago, we reported that the number of patients waiting more than 36 weeks to start receiving treatment from the time of referral was down 28 per cent compared with last year, and that the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust continued to meet its target of reaching 65 per cent of emergency cases within eight minutes.

So the message is a mixed one; a curate’s egg of statistics. And this will continue to be the case as health-service managers continue to juggle limited resources.

For whenever one aspect of the health service is targeted for improvement, almost inevitably resources are diverted from another area.

As we tend to live longer and have more complicated health needs, the cost of treating us goes up. If we are not prepared to pay more for that, then the juggling act will go on.