Agenda and minutes

RESOLVED: That Councillor Philip Corthorne be elected Chairman of the Health and Wellbeing Board Sub-Committee.

Apologies for absence were received from Mr Shane DeGaris (The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust) and Dr Ian Goodman (Hillingdon Clinical Commissioning Group).  Mr Mike Robinson attended as a substitute for Mr DeGaris. 

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

To consider the Sub-Committee membership and Terms of Reference.

Consideration was given to the Sub-Committee’s Terms of Reference (ToR) and to the further integration of health and social care. 

NHS North West London and other boroughs had supported a “pioneer” bid to the NHS for the integration of health and social care.  Hillingdon Council had not supported this approach as it was believed that undertaking its own integration project would enable the Borough to think more broadly and more long term and to act on behalf of residents.

Whilst The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (THH) was a service provider, Hillingdon Hospital was recognised as a fixed reference point for health by residents.  As such, it was thought important to include THH in the integration work. 

Councillor Ray Puddifoot noted that it was imperative that significant headway was made in relation to the integration of health and social care by the new year.  A national budget of £3.8 billion would become available in 2015/16 for local health and care integration.  This funding, known as the Integration Transformation Fund (ITF), was not new funding as it had been drawn from local authorities and CCGs.  The amount of ITF funding that Hillingdon would receive would directly relate to the health and social care developments that were planned for the Borough.   

It was proposed that work be undertaken to examine the possible formation of a new form of service delivery organisation, providing closer co-ordination between clinical services and local authority services.  This could be in the form of a company limited by guarantee.  To guide this work, it was suggested that the Council’s established transformation programme process (known as Business Improvement Delivery – BID) be used.  The process would look at the business model and determine whether it was supporting the process and/or adding additional frictional cost, burden and bureaucracy.  Realignments could then be considered to offer improvements. 

It was suggested that BID work get underway in relation to the integration of health and social care.  With regard to the remit of the BID review, it was suggested that everything be included unless, during the course of the process, it became apparent that it did not need to be covered.  The scope was broad and the first task would involve scoping and discovery. 

It was suggested that improving services for residents should be kept at the heart of any changes that were made.  These changes could, at some point, potentially be broadened out to identify synergies with a view to joining services together.  Councillor Puddifoot suggested that it would be prudent to appoint an external individual who could then put a team together to look at the current structures and processes (with input from clinicians and officers).  The team would report back the Health and Wellbeing Sub-Committee and the Board with suggestions and proposals for consideration.  The Board would then be able to decide which actions should be taken forward. 

The starting point of the BID review would be to develop a shared understanding of what each organisation currently  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.