A health board has decided to delay recruiting some new staff as part of an urgent attempt to save money.
Swansea Bay University Health Board, which is projecting a £12.3m overspend in 2019-20, said the delays will last until the new financial year begins in April.
A spokeswoman confirmed that the urgent measures mainly apply to administration, clerical and back office roles. The recruitment of doctors, nurses and those in "operationally critical posts" will not be affected.
The spokeswoman said: "Swansea Bay University Health Board is in a challenging financial position, and we are taking urgent action to reduce costs while still safeguarding patient services.
"Our aim had been to break even in 2019-20, but with continually high operational pressures, this won't now be possible. We must, however, continue to do what we can to reduce our deficit.
"We are therefore prioritising our spend on delivering high quality and safe healthcare, which means taking specific temporary measures to reduce spend in some support areas.
"The recruitment of non-rostered staff - mainly admin and clerical or back office roles - is now being delayed until April.
"Only in exceptional circumstances, for example where a delay could adversely impact on patient care, will these new staff be allowed to take up post before the new financial year."
Swansea Bay UHB also confirmed that some clerical and administration agency staff were temporarily stood down over the two-week Christmas period.
The spokeswoman added: "This was not a decision taken lightly, but weighed against the need to safeguard money for patient services."
On Thursday, it was announced that A&E departments recorded their poorest-ever performance against their four-hour waiting times target.
Less than three-quarters (72.1%) of patients spent four hours or less in an emergency department before being admitted, transferred, or discharged.
It was the worst performance since the figures were first recorded in 2009.
Similarly in December, the Welsh Ambulance Service failed to meet its emergency response target for the second month in a row.
Crew members are tasked with reaching 65% of "red" calls, dedicated to patients in a life-threatening condition, within eight minutes.
However, just 62% of calls were reached within the target time in December.
