How regulation can support a preventative healthcare approach in Wales?

On 27 March, we hosted our ninth annual joint regulatory seminar with the Welsh Government online. The seminar brought together speakers from across health and social care to explore the theme ‘How regulation can support a preventative healthcare approach in Wales?’. Chaired by our Welsh Board Member, Eleanor Marks, the seminar considered how regulation can help move the system from reacting to harm towards identifying risk earlier, supporting professionals sooner and enabling safer, higher-quality care.

The keynote from Rhiannon Jones (Nursing Officer for Workforce and Education, CNO Office Wales) set the tone for the day by arguing that prevention must be “hardwired” into professional standards, education, assurance and revalidation, and by framing prevention as essential to delivering A Healthier Wales. She highlighted the importance of person-centred, community-based care and described regulation as a means of supporting earlier intervention, reducing inequalities and helping people stay healthier for longer.

Across the rest of the programme, speakers explored several connected themes. A panel featuring Lauranne Cullen (Regional Director for Cardiff and Vale, Llais) and Donna O’Boyle (Acting Executive Director of Professional Practice, NMC) emphasised the importance of putting people first, arguing that people’s experiences and voices can act as early warning signs of risk and that regulation should make better use of lived experience, system-wide data and upstream learning. 

Later sessions focused on the role of data in tackling inequalities, with Professor Anton Emmanuel (Director of EDI, NHS Wales) stressing that data only matters if it is acted on, and on the opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence, with Janet Monkman (CEO, AHCS) and Dr Alex Aubrey (Clinical Lead for AI, HEIW) highlighting AI’s potential to support earlier detection and intervention while underlining the continued importance of human judgement, evaluation and workforce capability.

Overall, the seminar highlighted a shared view that regulation can be a key enabler of prevention – supporting earlier action, better use of insight and data, stronger collaboration, and a more inclusive and person-centred health and care system in Wales.