Agenda item
Emerging Health and Social Care Issues
Purpose: To receive presentations from the NHS Berkshire West and the Council’s Adult Social Care Service to brief Members on the emerging issues and trends that will impact upon future service delivery.
Minutes:
Mrs Beverley Searle (Director of Partnerships & Joint Commissioning, NHS Berkshire West) presented the changes arising from the election of the Coalition Government and the reforms that would affect the health service (Agenda Item 4). The Powerpoint presentation attached to these minutes at Appendix A.
Key changes included devolving health budgets to General Practioners (GPs), the abolishment of Strategic Health Authorities and increasing democratic accountability of PCT Board Members.
Primary Care Trusts may continue to exist as commissioners of complex or specialist services with a strengthened public health role.
Other initiatives to be introduced included the right to choose a GP (extending beyond current geographical restrictions), access to effective 24/7 urgent care and arrangements for monitoring of GP commissioning decisions.
The importance of regulators for GP commissioning was highlighted as GPs would have a role as both commissioners and providers of services; and monitoring would be critical to ensure quality and equity of access to services.
More detail on the changes would be available on 15th July when the NHS White Paper was due to be published.
Mrs Searle also tabled two briefing papers one on Specialist Palliative Care to inform the Committee of the public engagement from July to October 2010 and the model of future services created in response to the work done with local stakeholders.
Mrs Searle also briefed Members on “Care for the Future” and the review of urgent care needs, planned procedures and appointments, long-term conditions, end of life care, maternity and paediatrics. This work was being done across Berkshire and Buckinghamshire and it was felt there might be scope for a joint piece of scrutiny work.
Mrs Amanda Joyce (Head of System Transformation, West Berkshire Council) delivered a presentation on health and social care services (see Appendix B of the minutes) which highlighted the history of joint working locally. Keeping patients well and out of hospital was a key focus for the NHS and would equally require a whole systems view to be taken; as any alterations to acute hospital services would impact significantly upon the Council’s Home Care services.
Mrs Joyce highlighted the demographic figures which showed numbers in the over 65+ age bracket in West Berkshire increasing by over 200% in the next 25 years. She highlighted the potential huge demand this could place on Council services.
Mrs Joyce described the proposed new operating model for adult social care services emerging from the Council's Putting People First programme. It would enable the best use to be made of existing resources pending the outcome of the Government's national one year review of the whole adult social care system. Putting People First includes looking at the early stages of intervention, the provision of greater guidance, advice and support to encourage self-help, and the promotion of personalisation, choice and control for people who use services.
RESOLVED that:
(1). The presentations on the future of health and adult social care services be noted and that the Select Committee be kept abreast of future changes.
(2). “Care for the Future” be added to the Healthier Select Committee work programme.