Agenda and minutes

Minutes of the Meeting held on Monday, 15^th June, 2015 (previously circulated). 

The minutes of the meeting held on 15th June 2015, were signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

Representatives from the Lancashire North Clinical Commissioning Group have been invited to attend the meeting. 

An Executive Summary, providing background information, is attached and a shorter presentation will be provided on the evening to inform of the current and future health and care services. 

All Members of Council have been invited to attend the meeting to ask questions. 

The Chairman welcomed Dr Alex Gaw, GP and Chairman of Lancashire North Clinical Commissioning Group and Andrew Bennet, Chief Officer, Lancashire North Clinical Commissioning Group, to the meeting.

It was noted that all Members of Council had been invited to attend for this item.

For the benefit of the newly elected Members of the Committee, Dr Gaw gave a summary of the ‘Better Care Together’ project than had commenced 2 years ago developing a clinical strategy with 3 key challenges :-

·         Improving the sustainability of our services to meet needs of local population

·         Improving the quality / safety and experience of patients using local health services

·         Reducing the health system deficit

Clinical leaders from across all organisations came together to design a new clinical model of care for the Bay, through a series of design workshops and clinical summits between January and May 2014. The Strategy was approved in principle by NHS England in October 2014.

Members were given details of the Better Care Together Clinical Model which would see integrated primary, community and secondary care services in the localities. This would result in smaller, safer hospitals that were more responsive to needs but still providing essential services (e.g. A&E, maternity).

It was reported that “The Five Year Forward View” set out how the health service needed to change, looking to a more engaged relationship stakeholders, promoting wellbeing and the prevention of ill-health.

‘Better Care Together’ applied to be a Vanguard site and was successful only one of the 29 Vanguard sites which meant support would be provided enabling the project to move further and faster with some of the pilot work for new care models across the healthcare system.

Members were given the opportunity to ask questions.

A number of questions were asked relating to such issues as cross border problems, promoting wellbeing, mental health services, staff reductions and measurable indicators.

Resolved :-

(1)  That Dr Alex Gaw and Andrew Bennet be thanked for their attendance at the meeting.

(2)  That a further update be provided to the Committee in due course.

Representatives from University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust have been invited to attend the meeting to provide an update. 

All Members of Council have been invited to attend. 

The Chairman welcomed Aaron Cummins, Director of Finance of UHMB and Phil Woodford, Associate Director of Corporate Affairs of UHMB to the meeting.

It was noted that all Members of Council had been invited to attend for this item.

Members of the Committee were given details of the background to the Royal Lancaster Infirmary being put into Special Measures following the Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) inspection last year after finding the Trust to be inadequate.

It was reported that the CQC would be returning to the Trust the following week for 3 days to re-investigate followed by an unannounced inspection in subsequent weeks. The Trust will then have to wait 8 weeks for the CQC’s report grading the Trust.

The Committee went on to hear the improvements that had been made by the Trust in the last 12 months. These included £7 million investment in additional staff including 125 nurses and 25 doctors, improved communication and engagement with staff, new performance ‘dashboards’, improved record keeping and also easier access to case note availability.

It was reported that Ward 39 located at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary which had been highlighted as inadequate by the CQC, had now increased its number of nurses by 20% and split the ward into clinic zones, resulting in improved feedback of the ward.

Members asked a number of questions relating to self assessment, bank nurses and recruitment.

Resolved :-

(1)  That Aaron Cummins and Phil Woodford be thanked for their attendance at the meeting.

(2)  That an update on the CQC inspection be provided at a future meeting.

Diane Armstrong from the Dementia Forum will provide an update to the Committee. 

The City Council’s Older Peoples Champion and relevant Ward Councillors have been invited to attend. 

The Democratic Support Officer provided the Committee with an update on the Dementia Friendly Communities project.

Members were advised that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee had agreed to begin a project with Age UK at its meeting in January 2014. Bare and Torrisholme wards had been chosen as the wards with a high population of Older People.

The pilot had begun in Bare working with the established Business Association to promote the project. Around 14 businesses had been awarded the ‘Working Towards being a Dementia Friendly Community’ window stickers for their business.

It was reported that the project had recently started in Torrisholme but had stalled as the lead officer from Age UK had been made redundant. The Dementia Forum, which was established to oversee dementia support across the district, had agreed to now to scale down the work of the Forum and concentrate on the Bare and Torrisholme project.

Members were advised that, as Age UK was no longer leading the project, it was clear the emphasis needed to become more community lead. The Forum had agreed that it was essential for the local Ward Councillors to be involved with the project.

Members asked a number of questions relating to the project.

It was suggested that it would be useful for all Members to be offered a Dementia Friends session as part of the Member Development Programme.

Resolved :-

(1)  That the Ward Councillors for Bare and Torrisholme be encouraged to become involved with the Dementia Friendly Communities project.

(2)  That it be recommended that Members be offered a Dementia Friends session as part of the Member Development Programme.

It was noted that there had not been any requests for items to be considered in accordance with the Councillor Call for Action process.

It was noted that there had not been any requests for items to be considered in the accordance with the Consideration of Petitions process. 

There was no update.

Report of the Chief Officer (Governance). 

Members considered the Work Programme report which requested Members to consider what should be included in the Committee’s Work Programme for 2015/16. The report included a list of suggestions that had been received from members of the public, Councillors and the Council’s Management Team.

It was noted that a briefing note had been circulated prior to the meeting on the Council’s Empty Homes Strategy 2013-15. Members were asked to consider whether an update on progress made was still required.

Members were advised that a Motion was to be considered at the full Council meeting the following week regarding housing allocations. The Motion, if agreed, requested the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to consider the issue at its September meeting.

After receiving an update at the meeting, it was agreed that it would be more appropriate for the October meeting of the Committee, with the Planning Advisory Service invited to attend, but that this would not be a single item agenda.

The Committee considered each issue in turn and agreed the following actions:

With regard to the 2 issues that were referred to the Health Scrutiny representative, relating to Carers and Monitoring Old People’s homes, it was agreed that these issues should not be pursued.

It was agreed to invite the Leader of the Council to the next meeting of Committee on 9th September 2015.

It was recommended that when Cabinet Members are invited to attend that they provide a summary on their areas of responsibility, information on services and upcoming and ongoing issues the Committee should be aware of.

Resolved :-

That the actions set out above be agreed.