Archived decisions
Item 2
AT A MEETING of the HEALTH REVIEW COMMITTEE of the COUNTY COUNCIL held at The Castle, Winchester on Tuesday, 25 May 2004
PRESENT
Councillors: Dr. R.J. Ellis (Chairman); Mrs. A.M. McNair-Scott (Vice-Chairman);
Mrs. P.G. Banks; B. Bayford; I.F.E. Beagley; K.G. Chapman; C. Connor; Mrs. P. Dickens;
A.G. Dowden; Mrs. K. Heron; Mrs. P.G.E. Holden-Brown; P.K. Mason; R.C. McIntosh;
A. Mitchell; Mrs. E.M.F. Randall; K.P.J. Searle; D.F. Wright.
Also in attendance: Councillor F. Charlton (Portsmouth City Council);
Councillor B. Parnell (Southampton City Council); Councillor I. Stephens (Isle of Wight Council).
69. DECLARATION OF INTEREST
Members were mindful that where they believed that they had a personal or personal prejudicial interest in any matter to be considered at the meeting, they should normally, at the time of debate, declare their interest and, having regard to the circumstances described in paragraphs 9, 10, 11 and 12 of the County Council's Code of Conduct, consider whether to leave the meeting whilst the matter is discussed.
Councillor Mrs. P. Dickens declared a non-pecuniary interest in that she is employed by the NHS; Councillor P.K. Mason declared a non-pecuniary interest in that he is employed by the Ambulance Service and Councillor D.F. Wright declared a non-pecuniary interest in that his wife is a General Practice Manager.
70. MINUTES
The Minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 30 March 2004 were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.
71. CHAIRMAN'S COMMUNICATIONS
(a) Emergency Care Seminar
The Chairman reported that the Emergency Care Seminar had been held on
8 April 2004. In addition to Members of the Committee, some representatives from Public and Patient Involvement Forums (PPIF) had attended as well as Members from District and Borough Councils.
(b) Visits to NHS Direct
The Chairman reported that Members had visited NHS Direct on 17 and 21 May. Members had found the visit very informative and helpful. A letter had been sent to NHS Direct thanking them for making the arrangements.
(c) Meeting with NHS Chairmen and Hampshire and Isle of Wight Overview and Scrutiny Chairmen
The Chairman reported on the meeting which had taken place on 4 May. The feedback from the meeting had been very positive and there was specific interest in local area meetings that included PPIF Chairmen and health/scrutiny leaders from the Districts. Arrangements were in hand for these meetings to take place in July and September in North Hampshire, Mid and South West Hampshire and South East Hampshire.
(d) Strategic Health Authority
The Chairman reported that he had attended a Strategic Health Authority meeting on 11 May. A number of issues had been raised and he had commented on the lack of response to HealthFit, the impact of refocusing leadership and their underlying deficit. Approval had been given at the meeting for the Private Finance Initiatives for Queen Alexandra Hospital and Lymington Hospital.
(e) Local Government Association Health Group Seminar
The Chairman reported that he had attended the seminar on 12 May and his attendance had confirmed that Hampshire's approach was correct and leading edge.
(f) Meeting with Kent, Surrey, West Sussex, East Sussex and Brighton and Hove Overview and Scrutiny Committees
The Chairman reported that he had attended this meeting on 20 May which had provided an opportunity to share information and experience to date. The value of networking was identified and future meetings would be extended to include Portsmouth City Council, Southampton City Council, the Isle of Wight Council and Medway Council. The County Council would be hosting the next meeting in September.
(g) Surrey and Hampshire Joint Health Select Committee
The Chairman reported that the next meeting of the Committee would be held on
9 June 2004.
(h) Web-Site
The Chairman reported that the web-site had now been launched on www.hants.gov.uk/healthscrutiny.
72. DEPUTATIONS
There were no deputations to this meeting.
73. LOOKING AHEAD - REVIEWING EMERGING ISSUES FOR MANAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF NHS SERVICES IN HAMPSHIRE AND THE ISLE OF WIGHT
The Chief Executive of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Health Authority presented a report (Item 5 in the Minute Book). He said that the emerging issues continued to be those detailed at the last meeting along with Beyond HealthFit on which he had given a presentation. Work was continuing on clinical services transformation and he would be contacting the Chairman and Health Review Manager on this issue.
RESOLVED:
That the report be received and noted.
74. HEALTH REVIEW PROGRESS REPORT
The Chief Executive presented a report on the progress made to date on the 2004/05 programme of reviews (Item 6 in the Minute Book):
Review of Access to Therapy Services in Schools
Both Education and Health had expressed concerns over the service and welcomed the review. An initial meeting with Mid Hants PCT had shown that preliminary work on this topic had already been carried out and a multi-agency discussion group which had met on 2 May 2003 identified challenges, opportunities and ways forward for the service. It was proposed to use the findings as a basis for the review and the programme for the review was outlined. The review group would be chaired by Councillor Mrs. McNair Scott, and Councillors Mrs. Dickens, Mrs. Randall and Mrs. West had expressed an interest in being on the working group. The Chairman asked for further nominations to the group and Councillor Mrs. Holden-Brown volunteered her services.
Review of Administration of Medication to Children in Schools
The Chairman and Health Review Officer had met with the County Education Officer who had explained the guidance for the administration of medicine in schools that had been developed by the DfES and the County Council. The policy had been adopted by most schools in the County and overall the service had been managed well with no cause for concern. As a result it was recommended that no further action be taken on this review.
Review of Access to Foot Care for People with Diabetes
An initial meeting had been held on 9 December 2003 with a representative from the Strategic Health Authority and local Podiatry Services which had suggested a way forward. The programme for the review was outlined. The review group would be chaired by Councillor Dowden, and Councillors Mason, McIntosh and Williams had expressed an interest in being on the working group.
RESOLVED:
That the progress with the review programme be noted and no further action be taken on the proposed review of the administration of drugs in schools.
75. INQUIRIES RECEIVED AND ACTION TAKEN
The Chief Executive presented a report on inquiries received, the source of each inquiry and the action taken (Item 7 in the Minute Book). He gave details about Diagnostic and Treatment Centres; Arrangements for Patient and Public Involvement in Health and the Interrelationships; Redevelopment of Queen Alexandra Hospital/Services in South East Hampshire; Delayed Transfers of Care; Visits to NHS Direct; Progress with Lymington Public Finance Initiative; the Role of Healthcare Commission; Differential Tariffs; and the Future of Andover Hospital.
RESOLVED:
That the report be received and the actions outlined in the report be endorsed.
76. PROPOSALS TO DEVELOP OR VARY NHS SERVICES
The Chief Executive presented a report on proposals from the NHS to vary or develop health services in the area of the Committee (Item 8 in the Minute Book). He gave details of proposals on:-
Eastleigh and Test Valley South Primary Care Trust Consultation - The Mount Hospital.
The final phase of the PCT consultation ran between 15 April and 13 May 2004 and shared the model for the future provision of health services following feedback from patients, carers, the public and other key stakeholders over the last five months. The PCT had confirmed that it would share the next stages of consultation with the Committee and given an absolute assurance that no service would close until alternative provision was available. In addition, the PCT had intended to invite patient and carer representation on the steering group to oversee the work.
HealthFit Implementation
The Strategic Health Authority had responded to the response the Committee had made on HealthFit implementation.
Mental Health Services in North East Hampshire
The response of the NHS to the Surrey/Hampshire Joint Committee confirmed that all the findings of the Committee were accepted, but they did not contain satisfactory detail on the action being taken to address the weaknesses identified. A further meeting of the Joint Committee was to be held on 9 June 2004 to discuss any further action required by the NHS.
Blackwater Valley and Hart Primary Care Trust - Changes to Service Provision at Fleet Hospital
The consultation process now provided the PCT with a clear idea of the elements of its proposals that were supported by local stakeholders and those that remained a cause of concern. Further work was now being undertaken with key stakeholders to develop affordable options for developing services which would be the subject of further consultation.
New Forest Primary Care Trust - The Future of Community Hospitals
The PCT had published a discussion document setting out options for developing community hospitals in the New Forest area. The three main discussion issues were:
· Was the patient pathway and experience enhanced by having a community hospital?
· Do community hospitals relieve pressure on acute services?
· Were they a cost effective use of finite resources?
Hampshire Partnership: Reprovision of Locally Based Hospital Units for People with Learning Disabilities in South West Hampshire
The Hampshire Partnership in conjunction with Hampshire County Council Social Services had published arrangements for re-housing and providing domiciliary support to this service for people with learning disabilities in South West Hampshire. The proposal included detail of work undertaken to involve stakeholders and the public and feedback on existing services from residents and relatives.
Maternity Services in South East Hampshire
Confirmation of the timing of the formal consultation process was still awaited.
Foundation Hospitals: Southampton University Hospitals Trust; Winchester and Eastleigh Health Care; North Hampshire Hospital
A response had been made to the formal consultation from the local hospitals providing services to people living in Hampshire that were seeking Foundation Trust status. The consultation documents did not include any proposals to substantially develop or change services and as a result joint committee arrangements to respond to the consultation process were not necessary. Members were advised that the North Hampshire Hospital had now withdrawn its application for Trust status.
Reforming the NHS Complaints Procedure: National Consultation
A response had been made to the national consultation and was shown as Appendix 8 to the report.
Choosing Health: National Consultation on Public Health
A draft response had been made to the Department of Health and was shown as Appendix 9 to the report.
RESOLVED:
That:-
(a) Eastleigh and Test Valley South PCT: Consultation on the future of The Mount Hospital
(i) The response of the working group be endorsed.
(ii) The PCT be invited to update the Committee on progress at the next meeting.
(iii) The expectation that services will not close until suitable alternative local provision has been made be re-affirmed.
(b) `HealthFit' Implementation
(i) The Committee be updated by the Health Authority on the next steps of the HealthFit process.
(ii) The Committee continue to press for information on the engagement of local people across localities as HealthFit rolls forward.
(c) Mental Health Services in North East Hampshire
The Committee be advised of the response of the lead PCT and any subsequent action taken by the joint Surrey/Hampshire Committee.
(d) Blackwater Valley and Hart PCT: Changes to Fleet Hospital
(i) Support be given for the revised arrangements for developing services at Fleet Hospital proposed by the PCT.
(ii) The Committee be advised of the next phase of consultation.
(e) New Forest PCT: The Future of Community Hospitals
(i) The PCT be invited to confirm the response received from local people to the discussion document.
(ii) Comments on the discussion document be sent to the Health Review Manager by 27 July 2004.
(f) Hampshire Partnership: Reprovision of Locally Based Hospital Units for People with Learning Disabilities
(i) The action taken by the Hampshire Partnership be noted.
(ii) Any comments on the proposals be sent to the Health Review Manager by the end of May 2004.
(g) Maternity Services in South East Hampshire
(i) The Committee be informed of any action taken by the Joint Committee.
(ii) The criteria for responding to consultation previously agreed by the Committee be drawn to the attention of the Joint Committee.
(h) Foundation Hospitals
The action taken by the Chairman in relation to Foundation Hospitals be endorsed.
(i) Reforming the NHS Complaints Procedure
The response to the Department of Health be endorsed.
(j) `Choosing Health': National Consultation
The draft response to the Department of Health be endorsed.
77. ANNUAL REPORT 2003/04
The Chief Executive presented the annual report for 2003/04 which provided feedback on the work of the Committee over the last twelve months, identifying lessons learnt and the action taken by the Committee in discharging the health overview and scrutiny function (Item 9 in the Minute Book). Members were impressed with the format of the report and wished to thank the internal print room for their work on its presentation.
RESOLVED:
That:-
(a) The annual report for 2003/04 be approved.
(b) The report be circulated to all Members of the County Council and partner organisations.
(c) The report be placed on the web-site.
(d) The internal print room be thanked for their work on the presentation of the report.
4jM250504