Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence had been received from Councillor Simon Arnold (Councillor Nicola Brightman was present as his substitute) and Councillor Devi Radia.

There were no declarations of interest in items coming before this meeting. 

RESOLVED:  That all items of business be considered in public. 

RESOLVED:  That the minutes of the meeting held on 28 April 2021 be agreed as a correct record. 

RESOLVED:  That the minutes of the meeting held on 29 April 2021 be agreed as a correct record. 

RESOLVED:  That the minutes of the meeting held on 20 May 2021 be agreed as a correct record. 

The Chairman welcomed those present to the meeting.  He advised that, under normal circumstances, there would have been a large number of witnesses attending the meeting.  However, with the ongoing pandemic and the legal requirement that Council meetings were now held in person, this had reduced the number of witnesses in attendance.  It was suggested that the Chairman and the Labour Lead meet with those organisations that were unable to attend in person to ask questions and gather information outside of formal Committee meetings which could then be reported back to the other Committee Members and used to inform the final report. 

The issue of children’s dental services had first been considered by the Committee in 2019 and had prompted the creation of a Select Panel to undertake a more in-depth review.  The pandemic had halted the review after only one evidence gathering session.  Rather than reinstating the Select Panel to complete the review, Members had hoped to scrutinise the subject in one Committee meeting with additional information gathered in informal meetings outside of the formal meetings. 

Some key lines of enquiry had been included in the report.  Members were advised that there was no requirement for them to use the questions in the report but that they might give them some ideas on scrutinising the issue. 

Dr Andrew Read, Clinical Director of Dental Services at Whittington Health NHS Trust and Deputy Chair of the Paediatric Dental Network (PDN) in North West London (NWL), joined the meeting via Microsoft Teams.  Dr Read advised that the Trust provided specialist community dental services in Hillingdon as well as promotional programmes.

The PDN comprised clinicians from the NHS with a focus on paediatric dentistry.  Work had been channelled towards addressing the huge backlog of children that had needed dental treatment under general anaesthetic (GA) by trying to increase capacity.  A network of dental practices was also being developed to help improve skills. 

It was suggested that there needed to be a greater focus on supporting upstream public health programmes as the driver for GA activity was tooth decay in children.  Although the level of tooth decay in children aged 3 and 5 in Hillingdon was one of the worst in London, it was not the worst in NWL.  There was no easy explanation for why levels of tooth decay were higher in NWL than elsewhere as it was a complex matter and drivers were not always easy to tease out. 

In terms of addressing levels of tooth decay in the Borough were concerned, it was suggested that strategies were needed to improve access to services but also to reduce the need for services.  A number of schemes had taken place to promote oral health in children and young people which had included: supervised brushing in schools; the distribution of toothbrush and toothpaste packs; and train the trainer sessions.  Unfortunately, the level and type of oral health promotional activity in Hillingdon was likely to fall short of that required to address the high level  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

Consideration was given to the Committee’s Work Programme.  It was agreed that, given the depth of the subject, the Committee’s next meeting on 20 July 2021 would again focus on children’s dental services and the scrutiny of digital connectivity would be moved to a future meeting. 

Members confirmed that they were happy for the Committee’s draft response to the Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust quality report for 2020/2021 be submitted.  It was noted that The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust quality report would not be received until Monday 21 June 2021 at the earliest.  Once received, it would be circulated to Members of the Committee, and a response would be drafted which would have to be submitted by Tuesday 29 June 2021. 

Although all Members on the Committee were encouraged to question all of the health partners that attended meetings, it was agreed that, as health was so vast, there was value in specific Members building up a knowledge and expertise of a particular organisation.  As such it was agreed that the lead Member for each health partner would be as follows:

1.    London Ambulance Service NHS Trust (LAS) – Councillor Darran Davies

2.    The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (THH) – Councillor Simon Arnold and Councillor Peter Money

3.    Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWL) - Councillor Nick Denys

4.    Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust (RBH) – Councillor June Nelson

5.    Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) – Councillor Devi Radia

6.    Hillingdon Health and Care Partners (HHCP) – Councillor Heena Makwana

The Chairman suggested that new Members to the Committee might like to watch the YouTube broadcast of the Committee’s meeting on 28 April 2021 where an update had been provided on the Hillingdon Hospital redevelopment.  A public virtual consultation would be launched on Tuesday 22 June 2021 and it was suggested that all Members on the Committee might like to take a look. 

RESOLVED:  That the Work Programme, as amended, be agreed.