REPORT OF THE

EXECUTIVE MEMBER

SOCIAL CARE

PART II

TOWARDS AN INTEGRATED HAMPSHIRE HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE STRATEGY FOR OLDER PEOPLE WITH MENTAL HEALTH NEEDS

1. Hampshire County Council, Hampshire Partnership Trust and Local Primary Care Trusts are all committed to developing services for Older People with mental health needs in line with National Service Framework for Older People (NSF) targets and developments. However the developments have currently been undertaken separately resulting in an uneven service across the County with no unifying strategic vision.

2. A jointly commissioned specialist study by Hampshire Social Services and Hampshire Partnership Trust of the models available for the provision of these services and their applicability to Hampshire was undertaken from December 2003 to April 2004.

3. The aim of the study was to formulate recommendations for effective integrated working for frontline specialists and generic health and social service workers providing assessment, care management and specialist professional input for Older People with mental health needs in line with the NSF Standard 7.

4. The proposed model will be a phased development of a Community Older Peoples Services within a Countywide Commissioning Framework incorporating the best of what Community Mental Health Teams have to offer in terms of specialist expertise with a service that responds to all older persons and their carers.

5. The strategic aims and objectives of the model are to provide person centred, outcome focussed assessment, treatment and care services to Older People with mental health needs and their carers across the local health economy in Hampshire that is user influenced, holistic, responsive and high quality by:

· Establishing a Community Older Persons Service in each PCT area that brings together Health and Social Services professionals for Older People into `virtual' or completely integrated working arrangements depending on local requirements, and subject to an explicit cost benefit analysis;


· Social Services and the local PCTs developing a Hampshire Countywide Older Peoples Mental Health Strategic Commissioning Framework and Process complementing the Local Implementation Team process;


· Building a strong, well informed and mutually supportive workforce where individuals work within their own acknowledged professional expertise as well as being part of a single process to support Older People.

6. The Executive Member was pleased to endorse this model of service for Older Peoples Mental Health Services as it addresses a full range of agencies' concerns and requirements and provides a shared vision for those services alongside a robust County Council and Primary Care Trust Commissioning Structure and Process.

7. This supports Aim 1 of the Corporate Strategy.

Felicity Hindson MBE

Executive Member for Social Care

4IR960804