Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board are joining the first NHS Estates and Facilities National Day of Celebration – and to mark the huge contribution made by an army of hidden NHS heroes in North Wales.

 

More than 1,800 people work in vital roles to help hospitals and other sites in North Wales run smoothly, including porters, domestic assistants and tradespeople, laundry and catering staff, and many more.

Domestic assistant Karen Owen says she thoroughly enjoys her work keeping our Tegid surgical ward at Ysbyty Gwynedd “spotlessly clean”.

Karen said: “The running of the ward is very important to a domestic, we need to maintain our standards – not just for staff, but the patients,” she says. “The patients take priority.

“It’s just working as a team. It’s not just domestics, we are a family here on Tegid. We all pull together. We’ve had some difficult times over COVID – and some sad times – but we’ve all been there for one another.”

Urologist Dr Ashok Bhuvanagiri praised Karen and her colleagues.

“Karen and our domestic staff keep our wards very clean – that helps for the staff and especially for the patients,” he said.

“They are a vital part of our work network in the wards. Thank you very much Karen – without your help, we can’t go on to treat our patients properly.”