Agenda item

Report by West Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group.

The report outlines the Joint West Sussex Place-based Response to the NHS Long Term Plan by health and local government partners across Sussex.

6.1      The Committee considered a report by NHS West Sussex

Clinical Commissioning Group (copy appended to the signed minutes) which was introduced by Pennie Ford, Executive Managing Director (West Sussex) who told the Committee: -

·         The Plan sets out a strategic response to local and national expectations with a range of commitments on how health and social care will work together, including a change to pathways and a continuation of work begun in the last few years which will lead to improvements in the quality of providers and other areas

·         The Plan represents the collective response to increasing challenges and sets out the development of network models

·         Health & Care consultation events in 2018 helped inform the Plan as did the Population Health Check in 2019 – Our Health & Care, Our Future will also feed into the Plan

·         The Sussex Plan will be delivered through three place-based plans co-terminus with local authority areas

·         The focus had been be on prevention and addressing inequalities

·         The key areas of progress are; West Sussex becoming an Integrated Care System from April 2020 and the three West Sussex clinical commissioning groups merging into one

·         Although Covid-19 meant that formal planning for 2020 was suspended, the overall long-term priorities still stand with amended timetables and details – some, such as digital care, being implemented more quickly whereas non-urgent elective work had been paused

·         There was rethinking on how to tackle some priorities such as inequalities and the Big Health & Care Socially Distanced Conversations would help get people’s views on, and inform a joint delivery plan

·         Work was taking place on a joint delivery plan

6.2      Summary of responses to members comments and questions: -

·         A series of programmes were being run in acute, primary and mental health settings to strengthen local mental health services with recognition of demand built into restoration plans

·         The financial position was challenging with a £60m deficit and targets for 2020/21 were not yet known

·         The funding gap would need to be filled through the transformation programme, but not all in one year

·         The Covid-19 response was fully funded

·         Finance directors from partner organisations were working together to transform services to improve quality and make savings

·         There had been mixed feedback regarding digital consulting in primary care which would be one of the topics for the Big Health & Care Socially Distanced Conversations – some face to face examinations would always be necessary

·         A workstream funded by Health Education England was looking at workforce issues led by an interim director with the aim of increasing recruitment by both traditional and innovative methods by putting staff skill mixes to best use and promoting careers in health

·         One Public Estate was looking at provision of mental health facilities in Littlehampton

·         The Worthing Care Centre costs would be covered by the West Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group’s revenue expenditure

·         The Home First service had been discharging people quickly from hospital and would be expanded

·         The Primary Care Estates Strategy has identified that capacity is 30% below what is required now and will get worse in the future without significant change and investment and joint work with local authorities through One Public Estate – this will start to be addressed in the next stage of the Place-based Plan

·         Digital consulting had not brought an increase in risks

·         A prevention strategy was being written with the aim of reducing hospital admissions

·         Secondary prevention work was being undertaken with district and borough councils

·         Health and social care were working closely with providers over future needs

·         Funding for primary care networks came from national programmes

6.3      Resolved – that the Committee: -

                     i.        Welcomes the direction and emphasis on working across partner organisations and asks its Business Planning Group to reflect on the discussions when planning future inquiry days on primary care and mental health 

                    ii.        Suggests that priority areas for the delivery plan should include a continual review and development of the digital offer, workforce and prevention, especially targeting approaches based on local neighbourhoods, and asks for sight of the delivery plan when available

                   iii.        Requests that the Chairman write to district/borough councils in West Sussex to emphasise the importance of supporting sports/leisure facilities and to work in partnership with the West Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group, in relation to work around prevention

                  iv.        In relation to communications, suggests that the West Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group actively engages with those who have been shielded throughout the pandemic and those who have been identified as isolated, when consulting on future service provision as part of the place-based plan

                    v.        Requests sight of any Human Resource Strategy in relation to the operation and administrative delivery of West Sussex’s place-based plan