Cardiff and Vale University Health Board

22/04/2026

The first May bank holiday is in less than two weeks' time. Many of the pharmacies across Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan will be closed on Monday 4th May.

If you are due your repeat prescriptions around early May, please plan ahead by ordering them as soon as possible, and pick them up before you need them.

For a list of pharmacies open during the May Bank Holiday click below.

21/04/2026

The Menopause Café in East Cardiff Cluster offers a warm, welcoming space where open and honest conversations about menopause are encouraged.

This isn’t a medical session - just a relaxed, informal gathering where people living in East Cardiff can share experiences, ask questions, and connect with others who truly understand. Whether you’re going through menopause yourself or supporting someone who is, you’re welcome here.

- Help break the stigma
- Build confidence through conversation
- Feel supported and less alone

🗓 Last Tuesday of every month at 10am
📍 Maelfa Hub, Llanedeyrn
☕ Drop in anytime - no booking needed

Come along for a chat, a cuppa, and a sense of community.

20/04/2026

20/04/2026

Meet some of the school nursing team at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board.

If you’re a parent or carer of a child aged five to 16, you can get confidential advice and support from the team through Parentline.

The Parentline service allows you to text a school nurse on 07312 263178 for help and support for a wide range of topics, including:
• Emotional wellbeing
• Day and night-time wetting
• Soiling
• Healthy eating
• Behaviour
• Relationships

Visit the website to find out more.

19/04/2026

⭐ Meet our April , Anthony Griffiths!

Anthony Griffiths, a Consultant in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at University Hospital of Wales, has been named April’s Health Hero in recognition of the exceptional care, compassion and support he provided to a patient.

Anthony has worked at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board for almost 18 years. In recent years, his role has focused primarily on caring for women living with endometriosis, supporting patients who experience chronic pain and infertility.

Anthony was nominated by a patient, who wrote:
“As I type this, I am lying in a bed in the short stay surgical unit recovering from a total hysterectomy. I have been on the waiting list since January 2022, and this marks the end of a long wait, longer still when you consider that my symptoms started when I was 11, 30 years ago.

“Since I met Mr Griffiths nearly four years ago, he has shown grace, humour and pragmatism. He has helped me to feel empowered in my decision-making and has answered all of my questions clearly.

“Clearly, I still have some recovery to do, but a major milestone in my life took place today thanks to Mr Griffiths’ care. I couldn’t have asked for a better consultant.”

Speaking about the nomination, Anthony said:
“There are many aspects of joy in my role. One of the most powerful moments happens at the point of diagnosis. When I explain to someone that their symptoms are entirely compatible with endometriosis, many people begin to cry. At that point, I haven’t done anything in a procedural sense, I’ve simply listened.

“Seeing them return to a life filled with light and possibility makes a huge difference, not just to the patient, but to us as clinicians too.”

During Endometriosis Awareness Month, Anthony attended a local endometriosis march in Cardiff and was asked who his hero was. Anthony’s response was:
“My hero is every patient who has come through our doors after years of suffering.”

⭐ Congratulations Anthony and enjoy your prize from the Park Plaza Cardiff. Health Hero is kindly sponsored by Park Plaza Cardiff.

Read more: 🔗👇

18/04/2026

Retired Army Major Tony Kirk from Barry struggled to come to terms with a diagnosis of Parkinson’s until he was supported, by a Clinical Psychologist working within the Parkinson’s Service at Cardiff and Vale UHB, to reframe it and be kinder to himself.

Now 69, Tony was diagnosed in the summer of 2021. Although he was aware Parkinson’s was a possibility, he said it had never been something he had considered in depth. “It’s only since being diagnosed that I armed myself with some information and knowledge about what it is,” he said.

Arming himself with knowledge is something Tony has spent much of his life doing. After leaving school at 15, he joined the Army and completed a three year apprenticeship as an aircraft helicopter engineer. During a 35-year career in the Armed Forces, he took advantage of education opportunities, gaining a degree in aerospace engineering and a master’s degree in education. By the end of his military career, Tony had reached the rank of Major, worked as a training consultant and had helped to support the peace settlement in Bosnia. He retired from the Army at 50 and went on to do military training for Boeing until the age of 60.

Five years later Tony noticed he wasn’t walking in a straight line. “I always felt I was wandering from side-to-side, and I guess I just put that down to my broken body, having been in the army for 35 years,” he said. He had also lost his sense of smell, a common early symptom of Parkinson’s, but had attributed that to a previous nose operation.

In Wales there are approximately 8,600 people living with Parkinson’s, a progressive neurological condition with multiple motor and non-motor symptoms some of which include tremor, stiff muscles and slow movement, as well as loss of smell, anxiety and depression.

Tony’s Parkinson’s diagnosis brought shock, particularly following earlier serious health problems. “I’d already gone through prostate cancer and a heart attack,” he said. “I’m thinking, ‘what else is life going to throw at me?’ It was quite a challenging time, both for me and my wife, Chris.”
In the months that followed, Tony admits having “dark thoughts” about what the diagnosis could mean to him. “Whilst it wasn’t a terminal diagnosis, it was limiting and would affect my quality of life,” he said. “I’d been used to a very physical, able life… and I could see that being eroded.” He felt he was losing aspects of his identity that he’d held close.

Tony was introduced to a Clinical Psychologist working within the Parkinson’s Service at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board. The service is one of only a small number in the UK with specialised Parkinson’s psychology support embedded within the clinical team, providing early and personalised interventions. “Jointly, we decided she might be able to help me. And she has significantly,” Tony said.

Through psychological support, Tony began to adapt his outlook. “The sessions have given me a safe space to talk about my worries and emotions,” he said, explaining that the psychologist helped him develop coping strategies and “let go of some of my old ways of thinking, which were good and appropriate in a different life, but not in the life I have now.” Tony describes Parkinson’s as an “anti-social neighbour” he must learn to get along with. “The sessions with the psychologist have helped me transition and come to an acceptance of my noisy neighbour. I can now say I’ve got Parkinson's, it will limit me, but I’m going to do what I need to do today and be thankful for the things I still can do” he said. He has embraced the mental and physical challenge of finding “workarounds” to continue achieving his goals in new ways.

One of the most important lessons has been learning self-compassion. “In the Army there was little compassion,” Tony said. “I’ve learned to say to myself, ‘it’s okay. Stop. You don’t have to win.”

Tony now shares his experiences with trainee psychologists. “I go in and give them a day in the life of a person with Parkinson’s,” he said. “That is therapy for me… it makes me feel like I’m still contributing. And that's been an important part of my life, the ability to touch other people's life as an educator, as a trainer.”

During Tony hopes sharing his story will encourage others to seek the support they need to accept and live well with a Parkinson’s diagnosis.

17/04/2026

NYLO (Nutrition for Your Little One) is a free programme for families with children aged 5 and under.

Across eight sessions, you will get lots of tips and ideas on a healthy, balanced diet for young children, portion sizes, healthy snacks, tips to manage fussy eating and ways to increase activity.

To book onto the NYLO programme please contact nutrition.skillsforlife.cav@wales.nhs.uk or call/text 07972732614. You can also find out more here https://orlo.uk/nPabg

Join us in Barry, Ely, or Llanrumney over the next few weeks - we’d love to see you there!
• Wed 9.30am–11.30am – Castleland Community Centre, Barry (from April 22)
• Thu 9.30am–11.30am – Eastern Leisure Centre, Llanrumney (from April 30)
• Thu 4pm–6pm – St Francis Parish Hall, Ely (from April 22)

17/04/2026

This is Andy, an optometrist at Specsavers Penarth. He said: “The thing I most enjoy as an optometrist is helping people. Someone can come in in pain, and it’s really rewarding to be able to do something to help.”

If you are experiencing eye pain or have an urgent concern about your eyes, you can get a free urgent eye examination at your nearest high street optician.

An urgent eye examination is more in-depth than a routine sight test and can help with minor eye injuries, red or infected eyes, a foreign body in the eye and sudden changes in vision.

If you have an urgent sight problem, you can phone your closest opticians for an appointment, and the examination will be free of charge under the NHS.

An optometrist is there for your eye health needs, such as problems with your vision, eye pain or injury in the community.

16/04/2026

Professor Indu Deglurkar, Consultant Cardiac Surgeon and her team at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board in February 2026 performed the first Edwards Lifesciences Konect Resilia Bio-Bentall and ascending aortic replacement in Wales.

The aorta is the largest artery in the body and is attached to the heart. The Bentall procedure replaces faulty parts of the aorta, including the aortic root, aortic valve, and the ascending aorta.

In a biological/ Bio-Bentall procedure, this uses replacement tissue from an animal, such as a pig, or a cow. Edwards Lifesciences have further developed bovine pericardial tissue into “Resilia” tissue, helping to protect and preserve the tissues and prolong the structural integrity of the valve post-surgery.

Patients who have diseases of the aortic valve in combination with an aneurysm (a bulging of the aorta) or have an aortic dissection are likely to require a biological valved conduit.

Younger patients, and people who want to pursue an active life without relying on blood thinners are the ideal candidates for this technology.

Approved for use in the UK in October 2025, the Resilia Konect is a pre-assembled Aortic Valved Conduit and reduces the complexity of the operation. Previously, surgeons have not had a pre-assembled option and would have had to manually assemble the conduit.

Short-term, the patient outcomes have been excellent with long-term outcomes to be reported upon in the future.

Following an excellent post-operative recovery, the patient was discharged after six days.

In the future, we hope to offer the Konect Resilia Bio-Bentall conduit to young patients who need aortic root replacements opting for a biological valve within Cardiff and the Vale. This will hopefully help reduce the need for re-intervention with structural valve in the future.

Professor Deglurkar, who performs a vast array of complex open-heart operations, said: “It is fantastic to have pre-assembled biological Aortic Root and Ascending Aortic conduit which simplifies the operative steps and the patient will hopefully benefit from excellent long-term results.

“The NHS Wales Joint Commissioning Committee approved my special funding request for this biological valved conduit. I hope it will be routinely available for young patients who require this complex operation.”

The Health Board is proud to be at the forefront of new and developing technologies and is excited to take part in the latest developments.

16/04/2026

The Integrated Discharge Service acts as the Health Board’s single access point for discharge support.

They follow the Home First approach and help patients return home as soon as they’re medically ready.

Being at home is usually the best place to recover. Staying in hospital longer than medically necessary can lead to deconditioning, a decline in both physical and mental health. This is especially the case with older, vulnerable people.

Being in familiar surroundings and usual routines with friends, family or carers around you, helps you recover quicker following a hospital stay.

If you have a loved one in hospital, you can help by:
-Asking healthcare professionals about their discharge plans
-Offering help with transport home
-Bringing them suitable clothing and footwear
-Ensuring they can safely access their property when returning home

Going home to recover doesn’t mean going without care, community services and home-based care options are all available to support recovery tailored to each person’s needs. 🏘️

15/04/2026

If you have a common condition such as an ear infection, eczema, impetigo or a minor skin infection or require routine contraception, your local community pharmacy may be able to help.

Some pharmacies offer the Pharmacist Independent Prescriber Service – a free NHS service where you can get expert advice and free treatment if required, without needing to see your GP.

To find your local community pharmacy that offers this service, visit the Community Pharmacies page of our website and select ‘Independent Prescribing for Common Ailments and Contraception’ in the filter column.

Get seen by the right person, in the right place, first time. 💙

14/04/2026

Living in halls or shared housing in Cardiff?

Measles spreads incredibly easily in close-contact settings like student accommodation, lectures, libraries and social events.

The virus can linger in the air for up to 2 hours after someone coughs or sneezes.

If you haven’t had 2 doses of the MMR vaccine, you’re not fully protected.