MINUTES OF HEALTH SCRUTINY COMMITTEE MEETING - 28TH MARCH
2013
Present:
Councillor Matthews (in the Chair)
Councillors
Boughton
Hardy
H Mitchell
Doherty
Mrs Henderson
MBE
O'Hara
Stansfield
In attendance:
Ms Anne Allison, Programme Lead for Clinical Safety and Effectiveness, Lancashire
Care NHS Foundation Trust.
Mr R. Fisher, Chairman, NHS Blackpool.
Ms C. Grant, Integrated Commissioning Manager Public Health Link and Teenage
Pregnancy, Blackpool Council.
Ms J. Horrocks, Consultant, Dementia Consultation.
Ms J. Mills, NHS Blackpool.
Mrs N. Rogers, Blackpool Local Involvement Network
Councillor I. Taylor, Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing
Mr I. Treasure, Deputy Director of Corporate Affairs and Partnerships, NHS Blackpool
Mr C. Kelly, Senior Democratic Services Adviser (Scrutiny)
1. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
There were no declarations of interest on this occasion.
2. MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 28TH FEBRUARY 2013
The Committee agreed that the minutes of the meeting held on 28th February 2013, be
signed by the Chairman as a correct record.
3. PUBLIC SPEAKING
There were no applications for public speaking at the meeting
4. NHS BLACKPOOL / BLACKPOOL CLINICAL COMMISSIONING GROUP
Mr R. Fisher, Chairman, NHS Blackpool, provided the Committee with a presentation
summarising the main changes to the NHS from April 2013, which included the transfer
of commissioning responsibilities to the Local Authority, NHS England and Blackpool
Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG).
Mr Fisher advised the Committee on the Public Health responsibilities which would be
transferring to local authorities. It was noted that those responsibilities included Tobacco
MINUTES OF HEALTH SCRUTINY COMMITTEE MEETING - 28TH MARCH
2013
control and smoking cessation, Alcohol and Drug misuse services and Health Protection
outbreaks, which would include dealing with epidemics.
The responsibilities of NHS England were explained to the Committee. In response to a
question from the Committee, Mr Fisher advised that the governance structure of the
Local Area Team prevented commissioning board members having a conflict of interest
in their decision making process.
Mr Fisher also explained to the Committee what the Clinical Commissioning
Group’s areas of responsibility would be. Those included urgent / out of hours care,
mental health, maternity services and ambulance services. It was noted that a lot of the
services would be run by Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
In response to questions from the Committee regarding the reporting of NHS issues to
the community through Area Panel and Forum meetings, it was reported that the Clinical
Commissioning Group would produce a report for Area Panels and, in the event of a
representative being required to attend the meeting, a GP and a non-GP Board member
would attend to represent the Clinical Commissioning Group.
The Committee agreed to note the report.
Background papers: None.
5. LANCASHIRE CARE NHS FOUNDATION TRUST
Ms A. Allison provided the Committee with a presentation regarding the Lancashire Care
NHS Foundation Trust Quality Account for the period April 2012 to March 2013 and the
priorities for improving quality over the coming year from April 2013.
Ms Allison provided the Committee with background to the report, noting that during the
past year, Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust had become a health and wellbeing
organisation which provided a holistic service that aimed to provide high quality health
care with a strong focus on patient wellbeing.
The Committee was advised that the priorities for 2012/2013 had been:



Compliance with harm free care national priority
Increase in service user involvement
Reducing time on non-value added activity
Ms Allison informed the Committee that the priorities for 2013/2014 had been identified
and those were:



Compliance with harm free care enhanced national priority, which targeted an
increased standard from that in 2012/2013
All teams will seek the views of service users and carers to inform quality
improvements, for which there was an expectation every clinical service would be
engaged via a variety of methods.
Quality Strategy Implementation, which would remodel the approach to quality.
MINUTES OF HEALTH SCRUTINY COMMITTEE MEETING - 28TH MARCH
2013
Ms Allison expected that a draft of the Quality Account would be available by mid-April
and Ms Allison noted that any responses would be gratefully received. It was noted that
the final sign off date for the Trust Board was 31st May 2013, which was a month earlier
than previously planned.
The Committee agreed to note the report and presentation.
Background papers: None.
6. TEENAGE PREGNANCY UPDATE
Ms C. Grant, Integrated Commissioning Manager Public Health Link and Teenage
Pregnancy, Blackpool Council, presented a report on the Teenage Pregnancy Action
Plan.
Ms Grant summarised that the National Teenage Pregnancy (TP) Strategy was a tenyear strategy providing a strategic steer for the local authority to co-ordinate and deliver
their teenage pregnancy work. It was explained that this strategy came to an end in
2010 and that strategic responsibility for prioritising issues for determining how teenage
pregnancy services were organised, now rested with each local authority area.
The Committee noted from the most recent data release in February 2013, that the rate
had increased from the previous year. However, it was reported to the Committee that
the results of the previous year, released in February 2012, showing a rate of 49.7 per
thousand had been the lowest ever recorded rate of teen pregnancies in Blackpool.
It was reported to the Committee that the rate had been reducing since its peak in 2004
although Blackpool still had a higher rate than the North West and national average and
Blackpool remained the highest ranked local authority area for teenage pregnancy. In
response to questions from the Committee, Ms Grant suggested that the high rate was
due in part to Blackpool having a lower population than some other authorities which
could result in a small number of teen pregnancies having a much greater impact upon
the overall rate for the borough.
Ms Grant advised that the shift in emphasis to prioritising the work of teenage pregnancy
at a local level had enabled a concentration of efforts on the issues most relevant to
Blackpool. As a result Ms Grant was able to report that the Action Plan had two clear
identifiable strands of focus. Those were through increasing the uptake of long-acting
reversible contraception (LARC) and working with teenage girls to raise aspirations and
encourage positive sexual health and relationship choices.
Ms Grant reported the success of the Wellbeing in Sexual Health (WISH) Team and the
service’s one to one element, which was being heralded nationally for good practice.
The Committee was also advised that an important factor in the Action Plan was
education on the issue, through various levels. It was noted that this included through
school nurses, the Wellbeing in Sexual Health Team’s work within schools, and also
education for parents in order for them to gain confidence in providing informed advice to
their children about relationships and sexual health.
MINUTES OF HEALTH SCRUTINY COMMITTEE MEETING - 28TH MARCH
2013
The Committee agreed to note the report.
Background papers: None.
7. PUBLIC CONSULTATION - WORKING TOGETHER TO IMPROVE SPECIALIST
DEMENTIA CARE SERVICES IN LANCASHIRE
Ms J. Horrocks, Consultant, Dementia Consultation provided the Committee with a
verbal update on the outcomes of the consultation on Dementia Care Services in
Lancashire.
Ms Horrocks summarised the background information to the update. She noted that the
Committee had previously agreed a response to the consultation on Dementia Care
Services in Lancashire supporting Option 1. That option had been for an £11 million
investment in community health services, together with a £4 million investment in
specialist hospital services consisting of 30 beds on one site at ’The Harbour’,
Blackpool.
Ms Horrocks reported that an analysis of the consultation responses had been
undertaken and presented to the Cluster Board on 21st March. She reported that the full
version of the responses would be published by the end of April.
However, Ms Horrocks was able to report that the Cluster Board, after taking into
account the responses from the consultation, had considered that it would only be able
to decide on Option 1 after further consideration regarding the location. The reason for
this being that many Clinical Commissioning Groups around Lancashire had expressed
a preference for a more centralised location.
It was then explained to the Committee that the Cluster Board had charged the Clinical
Commissioning Groups to work with local authorities in order to identify any potential
alternative sites. It was reported that the Clinical Commissioning Groups would also
have to consider travel and access issues, as well as affordability and land availability
issues in central Lancashire areas. It was advised that formulating a final decision on
this issue was considered an urgent item for the Clinical Commissioning Group, as
delays could risk improving key services. Ms Horrocks reported that a schedule should
be available to be presented to the next meeting of the Committee, which would detail
key dates and deadlines in the process.
Committee Members expressed their extreme disappointment with the news that the
process would be delayed. It was considered that there was a moral imperative to
complete the facility in order to provide the care that people required. Ms Horrocks
advised that the construction of ’The Harbour’ site was going ahead ’at risk’, so it would
therefore not be delayed.
The Committee also considered that ’The Harbour’ site was a convenient location,
served by the motorway network and excellent transport links. It was also considered by
the Committee that part of the attraction in locating the site at ’The Harbour’ was that it
would provide a replacement for the closed dementia facilities at the Parkwood hospital.
MINUTES OF HEALTH SCRUTINY COMMITTEE MEETING - 28TH MARCH
2013
The Committee also expressed disappointment in that there would most likely be a cost
attached to finding possible alternative locations for the centralised site, which it was
considered could be better spent on improving the service itself.
Ms Horrocks reported that she would feedback the concerns raised by the Committee to
the Cluster Board. It was also considered that the Committee should express its
concerns and disappointment directly to the Clinical Commissioning Group Network.
The Committee agreed to note the report and that the Chairman of the Committee
should write to the Chairman of the Clinical Commissioning Group Network in order to
express the concerns of the Committee.
Background papers: None.
8. BLACKPOOL HEALTH AND WELLBEING BOARD
The Committee considered the minutes from the meeting of the shadow Health and
Wellbeing Board on 27th February 2013.
Councillor I Taylor reported that the shadow Health and Wellbeing Board was
considering all aspects which may affect a person’s health, not just clinical aspects. As
an example of this approach, it was noted that the shadow Health and Wellbeing Board
had considered issues around housing at its last meeting.
The Committee agreed to note the minutes.
Background papers: None.
9. COMMITTEE WORKPLAN
The Committee considered its Workplan for the remainder of the 2012/13 Municipal
year.
The Committee agreed that the Workplan be noted.
Background papers: None.
10. DATE OF NEXT MEETING
The Committee agreed to note the date of the next meeting as Thursday 23rd May 2013,
at 6.00 p.m. subject to approval at Annual Council.
Chairman
(The meeting ended at 7:30 pm)
Any queries regarding these minutes, please contact:
Chris Kelly,Senior Democratic Services Adviser
Tel: 01253 477164
E-mail: chris.kelly@blackpool.gov.uk