Agenda item

To receive an update from the Council’s representative on matters considered at the last meeting.  

22.1           Members received an update from Councillor Mrs J E Day, the Council’s representative on the Gloucestershire Health and Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee, on matters discussed at its last meeting held on 11 July 2017.

22.2           Councillor Day advised that the Committee had received a presentation demonstrating the outcomes of the 12 week engagement exercise in respect of the Gloucestershire Sustainability and Transformation Plan.  Feedback from the general public had included approval of focus on prevention and self-care; difficulties navigating a complex system; importance of treating the whole person; and better use of technology.  The Gloucestershire Clinical Commissioning Group was now developing service change proposals for consultation with partners.  These were required to go through the NHS England assurance process and would be received by the Health and Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee in due course. There was a view that the number of responses – 638 completed surveys – was relatively small and it was suggested that this related to the lack of detail in the Sustainability and Transformation Plan.  The expectation that there would be a significant increase in responses once the proposals for change were put out to consultation was acknowledged.  It was hoped that the consultation process would begin later in the year.  It was also recognised that, in a rural county, it would always be a challenge to ensure that a wide range of stakeholders were engaged, but the Gloucestershire Clinical Commissioning Group was of the view that the engagement activity did cut across all parts of the county.  Members had remained frustrated by the lack of detail in the plan and the time taken to bring forward the proposals relating to urgent care centres and the Forest of Dean.

22.3           The Committee had engaged in a detailed debate with the Director of Adult Social Services on the lessons learnt in relation to Cleeve Link.  Members had agreed that the way in which members of staff and Cleeve Link carers had responded to this situation was to be commended, particularly the carers who had gone into work despite no longer being employed by the organisation.  The report had described in detail the lessons learnt and there remained a shared view and concern that signs were missed.  Assurance was provided that the Commercial Services Team did have the necessary level of expertise in procurement and contract management, and that the Finance Team had the necessary skill base; notwithstanding this, confirmation was provided that additional expertise would be brought in if the situation required it.  There was deep concern that Gloucestershire County Council was unaware of how unmanageable staff rotas were until the collapse of the company; this was a significant learning point for the Council which should be taken forward in terms of future contracts.

22.4           Councillor Day advised that the Care Quality Commission follow-up inspection of Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust had taken place and the Trust remained rated as ‘requires improvement’. The Committee would consider the report at its Care Quality Commission workshop.  Members remained concerned with regard to the situation with the Minor Injury and Illness Units in the Stroud area, with a significant issue being workforce resilience.  It was important that this was monitored by the Committee, particularly as the proposals relating to urgent care centres were unknown at present.

22.5           A Member raised concern regarding the construction problem at Tewkesbury Community Hospital which meant that people were being sent to other medical centres.  He questioned whether there was any indication as to what had gone wrong and how long it would take to rectify.  Councillor Day indicated that this had not been discussed at the meeting but she shared those concerns.  Another Member noted that Vale Community Hospital and North Cotswold Hospital had been constructed under the same plan as Tewkesbury Community Hospital and he questioned whether similar problems could be expected with those buildings.  Councillor Day undertook to raise these points with the Gloucestershire Health and Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

22.6           The Chair thanked the Council’s representative for her update and indicated that it would be circulated to Members following the meeting.  It was

RESOLVED          That the feedback from the last meeting of the Gloucestershire Health and Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee be NOTED.