Agenda item

The Democratic Services officer introduced the draft report and reviewed the written and witness evidence the Committee had received.

Following discussion the following points were noted:

• That the final report include a Chairman’s Foreword and Closing Word
• New Recommendation 1: That the first recommendation read that telecare is beneficial and should be pursued in the future.
• Old Recommendation 1– That this recommendation be re-drafted to read – The Committee requests that good quality information and advice must be provided for families, carers and service users, working with health professionals to enable them to understand their assistive technology / telecare options to assist them to make informed choices  (to address their needs)
• Recommendation 7: That this be re-drafted to read: The Committee recommends that telecare be provided free of charge for a limited period (no longer than 6 weeks) after hospital discharge as part of the re-ablement project to provide assistance. (We feel that) Early exposure to assistive technology will help increase client confidence in the service and encourage further uptake in the service.
• That the final report incorporate further information about the charging policies of other Local Authorities and the respective rational for this.
• That the section of the report entitled - Areas for Development on agenda page 15 – Performance Indicators – That further comments be incorporated  on the implications of maintenance  guarantees,  product reliability and monitoring and also best value arising from the  procurement process.
• That Tables 1, 2 and 3 on pages 24 and 25 of the report be developed further and for an appendix to be included providing further information on how these figures were calculated.
• For officers to clarify whether the mobile response unit would be available 24/7 as mentioned at the top of page 24 of the report.
• That a further section be added discussing the cost implications of the Table - Home Carers on Call – on page 24 of the report.
• Old Recommendation 4 – That a further recommendation be added to illustrate cost savings.
• That further information be added on the advantages of an in-house option compared to out-sourcing the assistive technology service identifying the challenges facing the service, the present location of Careline and the impact this has on delivery.
• Current Recommendation 8 about in-house model – That this recommendation incorporate comment on the importance of local knowledge, local response and providing users with confidence.
• That further information be incorporated on Tustall and comment on the viability of a free service.
• That further information be provided on choice, how this will work work.
• That the current section on Finance be developed further highlighting how the service will be financed and how the upfront investment cost would be met.

Resolved –

That the report be amended for 27^th January meeting incorporating the changes listed above.

1. That revised recommendations be circulated to the Committee in advance of 27^th January 2011 meeting
2. That a revised draft report be considered at 27^th January 2011 meeting.
3. That the final report be considered at 22^nd February 2011 meeting.