Patients have to travel for miles to get dialysis

The council has joined patients in calling for local facilities to avoid 100-mile round-trips three times a week.

It has written to assembly Health Minister Jane Hutt, asking her to make sure there is a dialysis unit in Porthmadog's new hospital, which will open in two years time.

For over four years, kidney patient Eifion Owen has had to travel from his home in Pwllheli three times a week to Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor for his treatment.

"I get up at 0500 BST, wash and shave before breakfast and wait for the car to pick me up at 0700 to travel to Bangor.

"I'm on the machine for about four and a half hours. I'm very, very tired by the time I get home around 1500."

Mr Owen added: "I do this three times a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

"It would be very useful to have the treatment closer as some patients travel from Llanbedr near Harlech.

"Porthmadog would be central to everyone in Llyn and down to Meirionnyddshire."

Another patient Robin Jones also has to travel to Bangor twice a week from a nursing home in Nefyn.

"I start about 1130 BST and I'm not home until about 1900 - sometimes sooner sometimes later.

"I'm very tired and it would be better to have the facilities closer but then would it be as good - we don't know."

If they are building a new hospital then they should make sure that the have facilities there for every illness. Beti Jones Parry

Pwllheli town council has contacted numerous public bodies to highlight the fact that there is no facilities in the area.

They claim that a long journey adds to the pressures on the patients.

Beti Jones Parry, a town councillor, raised this after losing her husband last year.

He had to travel to Bangor for treatment and was suffering because of the journey. "I think that this illness is being ignored. It's an awful illness," she said.

"If they are building a new hospital then they should make sure that they have facilities there for every illness.

"They do a fantastic job in Bangor but I've spoken to them and they have said that one day they will have to say no to patients as there is no room or time. What will happen then?"

An assembly government spokesman said that Health Commission Wales was trying to increase the provision throughout the country.

"The fist step is to increase the provision in the general hospital but the commission do realise that a number of patients have to travel from afar to have treatment.