| Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board | |
| Native Name: | Bwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Betsi Cadwaladr |
| Map: | Betsi Cadwaladr location map.svg |
| Start Date: | 1 October 2009 |
| Headquarters: | Penrhosgarnedd Bangor LL57 2PW[1] |
| Staff: | 15,481 (2018/19)[2] |
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) (Welsh: Bwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Betsi Cadwaladr) is the local health board of NHS Wales for the north of Wales. It is the largest health organisation in Wales, providing a full range of primary, community, mental health, and acute hospital services for a population of around 694,000 people across the six principal areas of north Wales (Anglesey, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Gwynedd and Wrexham) as well as some parts of Mid Wales, Cheshire and Shropshire.[3] Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board is the operational name of Betsi Cadwaladr Local Health Board.
The Board is responsible for the operation of three district general hospitals, 22 other acute and community hospitals, and a network of over 90 health centres, clinics, community health team bases, and mental health units. It coordinates the work of 94 GP practices and NHS services provided by North Wales dentists, opticians and pharmacies.
The Board is named after Betsi Cadwaladr, a Welsh nurse born in Bala, Gwynedd in 1789. Towards the end of her life in her mid-60s she worked alongside Florence Nightingale, nursing casualties of the Crimean war.[4]
The Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board combined the North Wales NHS Trust (previously North East Wales NHS Trust and Conwy & Denbighshire NHS Trust), the North West Wales NHS Trust, and the six Local Health Boards of Anglesey, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Gwynedd, and Wrexham.
A report in 2013 by the Healthcare Inspectorate Wales and the Wales Audit Office said that leadership at the board was "fundamentally compromised" because the relationship between the chairman and chief executive had broken down. Both subsequently resigned.
The organisation was placed in special measures in June 2015, following a mental health services report alleging institutional abuse 2012/13, the Tawel Fan unit was closed in December 2014. On 24 November 2020, the Welsh Government announced that the health board would be taken out of special measures with immediate effect.[5]
Current
Former