14/08/2014

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:00:00. > :00:26.Calls have been made for private health-care patients

:00:27. > :00:28.in Wales to have the same rights as those on the NHS.

:00:29. > :00:32.At the moment if you're treated on the NHS you can turn to

:00:33. > :00:34.the Ombudsman, who'll investigate independently and impartially.

:00:35. > :00:37.But that's not the case for private patients.

:00:38. > :00:39.With many people now opting to go private, the Welsh Ombudsman

:00:40. > :00:49.India Pollock has this exclusive report.

:00:50. > :00:54.Former rugby player and jazz musician.

:00:55. > :00:58.Peter Lewis from Pontarddulais led a full and happy life.

:00:59. > :01:02.But memories of his final days haunt his wife, Ruth.

:01:03. > :01:05.In 2010 he needed knee replacement surgery and because

:01:06. > :01:08.of a long waiting list on the NHS he went to the private

:01:09. > :01:13.After being discharged from hospital he became unwell

:01:14. > :01:16.and was rushed into his local hospital for a blood transfusion.

:01:17. > :01:20.But Peter never recovered and passed away.

:01:21. > :01:23.Although he had other medical problems, his wife Ruth believes

:01:24. > :01:27.there were failures in the care her husband received at Spire Hospital.

:01:28. > :01:30.She's been pursuing a complaint against the hospital

:01:31. > :01:32.and surgeon who operated on her husband, but more than three

:01:33. > :01:38.and a half years on from Peter's death, it's still not resolved.

:01:39. > :01:41.It's as if time has stood still and I'm overwhelmed with the complaint

:01:42. > :01:52.process, with reliving the concerns and fears I had at the time.

:01:53. > :01:56.Each time a letter or a report comes through, you go back to square one

:01:57. > :02:06.There are around 130 registered private

:02:07. > :02:08.healthcare providers in Wales, offering services from cosmetic

:02:09. > :02:11.The organisation that represents them says

:02:12. > :02:20.its complaints procedure is robust and works well for patients.

:02:21. > :02:23.Nobody really has any faith in internal investigations.

:02:24. > :02:26.They really want to see investigations that are independent

:02:27. > :02:30.and they are not going to believe that an independent sector is going

:02:31. > :02:32.to really look properly and investigate properly anyone

:02:33. > :02:41.They want something completely independent.

:02:42. > :02:50.In a statement, Spire Hospital says its saddened by Peter Lewis'

:02:51. > :02:53.death and that the welfare of its patients is their top priority.

:02:54. > :02:56.Managers also say they have been in close contact with Ruth Lewis to

:02:57. > :02:58.help her resolve her concerns, but that it would be inappropriate

:02:59. > :03:00.to comment further until their investigation is complete.

:03:01. > :03:03.Now Wales' Ombudsman, charged with answering complaints about the NHS,

:03:04. > :03:09.He wants to see private health care brought within his remit.

:03:10. > :03:11.In terms of the importance of an independent

:03:12. > :03:14.and impartial investigation process, I would like to see an extension of

:03:15. > :03:18.the jurisdiction of our powers here so we can make sure that that type

:03:19. > :03:22.of impartiality and independence is available for people across Wales.

:03:23. > :03:25.The Welsh Government says it has no current plans to review the role

:03:26. > :03:30.As Ruth shares memories of happier times with her grandchildren,

:03:31. > :03:38.her battle for answers about what went wrong will go on.

:03:39. > :03:40.Torrential downpours have brought flash flooding to several parts

:03:41. > :03:49.Elsewhere, homes were inundated with water in the Radyr area of the city.

:03:50. > :03:54.People living there have been clearing up all evening.

:03:55. > :04:01.Shot, we are on the top of the hill and we didn't expect anything like

:04:02. > :04:06.this. -- shocked. Look at the roads coming down, it was like a river, a

:04:07. > :04:11.waterfall coming straight down. We didn't stand a chance.

:04:12. > :04:14.The man who killed five-year-old April Jones is seeking compensation

:04:15. > :04:17.for injuries after he was slashed on the face by a fellow inmate.

:04:18. > :04:20.Mark Bridger was jailed for life in May last year for murder, and

:04:21. > :04:24.BBC Wales understands the Ministry of Justice is contesting the claim

:04:25. > :04:28.Thousands of students have been getting

:04:29. > :04:31.their A-level results and for the first time in five years, the

:04:32. > :04:33.number of people here achieving the highest A-level grades has risen.

:04:34. > :04:36.Wales has also narrowed the gap with England, but the overall pass

:04:37. > :04:46.Our Education Correspondent Arwyn Jones reports.

:04:47. > :04:53.It's the culmination of the best part of 15 years of education. Their

:04:54. > :04:57.wonder there were some nervous faces at colleges across Wales this

:04:58. > :05:02.morning. Plenty of elation here at Gower College at students here

:05:03. > :05:09.mostly celebrated their success. How has it gone? Really good, I'm going

:05:10. > :05:14.to Sheffield University. I got an a in maths and I didn't think I was

:05:15. > :05:19.going to do it, but I did. The number of pupils who gained a star

:05:20. > :05:26.grades is up from 6% last year to 6.7% this year. Also an increase for

:05:27. > :05:28.those getting the top grades, ending four years of steady decline. But

:05:29. > :05:40.the proportion of students achieving a pass has fallen very slightly,

:05:41. > :05:43.from 97.6%, to 97.5%. I am very pleased this morning. We are seeing

:05:44. > :05:46.good a incremental progress across-the-board in terms of Welsh

:05:47. > :05:49.A-level results, heading in the right direction, and some very

:05:50. > :05:56.important elements of that, showing progress in the right direction.

:05:57. > :06:01.Here, as elsewhere, girls are continued to outperform boys, apart

:06:02. > :06:08.from at the highest a star grades, with just over 98% getting a start

:06:09. > :06:12.-E grades. This is a feature in England and Wales and it seems a

:06:13. > :06:15.permanent feature. Although I'm sure that schools and colleges are very

:06:16. > :06:19.much aware of this and therefore every effort is made to have

:06:20. > :06:27.strategies which do promote boys outcomes. Here, pupils celebrated

:06:28. > :06:32.success. Throughout Wales, more pupils chose to study chemistry,

:06:33. > :06:36.economics and history, with a drop in IT, German and Spanish. For the

:06:37. > :06:42.first time in over 30 years there has been a drop in the numbers did

:06:43. > :06:46.top grades in England, so our students are catching up. Still a

:06:47. > :06:48.way to go but Wales is now on the right track. Plenty of reasons for

:06:49. > :06:53.these students to celebrate tonight. The Television presenter

:06:54. > :06:55.and adventurer Bear Grylls, who's seeking planning permission to

:06:56. > :06:57.build a harbour at St Tudwal's island off Abersoch, says he's come

:06:58. > :07:00.up with a compromise. He's now altering the plans after

:07:01. > :07:02.visiting the island with officers Last year he removed a large slide

:07:03. > :07:14.off the island after being It's a spectacular area.

:07:15. > :07:16.We don't want to do anything that would ever threaten that.

:07:17. > :07:19.Conservation is right at the heart of what we do.

:07:20. > :07:22.Actually it has been great to be able to spend some time up here with

:07:23. > :07:25.the local authorities and Natural Resources Wales, and as soon

:07:26. > :07:33.as you see people face-to-face, we have actually come up with really

:07:34. > :07:39.sensible compromise plan where we try to do with slipway instead of

:07:40. > :07:41.a harbour and that keeps them happy and the council happy.

:07:42. > :07:43.Argentinian World Cup defender Federico Fernandez should become

:07:44. > :07:45.a Swansea City player in the next few days.

:07:46. > :07:47.The club has agreed a fee with Napoli

:07:48. > :07:58.Some dramatic weather today, especially in the south and east.

:07:59. > :07:59.Something quieter tonight and tomorrow, fewer showers and sunny

:08:00. > :08:08.spells. A quiet night tonight, further south

:08:09. > :08:11.it is dry and we have quite a bit of clear skies. Where we have clear

:08:12. > :08:18.skies we will see Misty patches forming overnight, temperatures

:08:19. > :08:22.10-14 Celsius. Chilly start tomorrow, the odd shower possible

:08:23. > :08:26.but for most of us it is dry. The rest of the dry and bright weather

:08:27. > :08:29.along the coastal areas. For the rest of the United Kingdom, few

:08:30. > :08:35.showers coming into the spine of the UK. Adding further north, highs of

:08:36. > :08:40.only 15 Celsius in Scotland. London is the place to be, highs of 22

:08:41. > :08:43.Celsius. Not looking too bad in Wales tomorrow afternoon, more sunny

:08:44. > :08:47.spells and much of the showers should have cleared by the

:08:48. > :08:53.afternoon. Breezy along coastal areas but all in all, light wind

:08:54. > :08:58.with highs of 16-20 Celsius in the sunshine. Feeling warm. A fine end

:08:59. > :09:01.to the working week. It fairly quiet night tomorrow except for the

:09:02. > :09:09.isolated shower, for the majority of us it is dry. In the countryside, we

:09:10. > :09:12.could see temperatures getting down to around seven Celsius. Getting

:09:13. > :09:16.into Saturday, the best day of the weekend. Breezy but more sunny

:09:17. > :09:20.spells and the odd shower, by the afternoon we will have a bit more

:09:21. > :09:27.clout but still some brightness coming through. A north-west and if

:09:28. > :09:32.low then. -- more cloud. It will feel more like autumn through

:09:33. > :09:34.Sunday. It is dry and brighter further south and sunshine and

:09:35. > :09:41.showers for the beginning of next week.

:09:42. > :09:43.On tomorrow's programme, the start of a series

:09:44. > :09:46.of special reports from Flanders, where a new memorial is being

:09:47. > :09:49.unveiled to the soldiers from Wales who fought in the First World War.

:09:50. > :09:52.We'll be speaking to those who campaigned for it and hearing from

:09:53. > :09:54.others who're making the journey to Belgium for the ceremony.

:09:55. > :09:59.We'll have updates in Breakfast from 6am.