Agenda item

Report of the Executive Director of Health and Adult Social Care and the Director of Public Health, requesting that the Panel comment on the details of the proposed findings and the arrangements for the publication of the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment for the period 2011-2014, attached.

The Panel received, noted and commented on the report of the Executive Director of Health and Adult Social Care and Director of Public Health, on the findings of the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) and the arrangements for the publication of the JSNA covering the period 2011-2014.  (Copy of the report circulated with the agenda and appended to the signed minutes).

The Panel received a presentation from Graham Watkinson, Public Health Consultant for NHS Southampton City and Martin Day, Strategic Business Manager, which highlighted the comments and key themes arising out of the consultation process which had taken place since September 2010.  It was acknowledged that there was a legal requirement to produce the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment.

Main points from the presentation included:

• Feedback had been received from many different consultees and many data sets had been identified during the development and consultation process, some of which had highlighted areas of concern where performance in Southampton was below other towns and cities;
• Southampton has little data in some areas and there is a need to improve data collection, working with commissioning services to do so;
• It was considered important for there to be a clear mechanism for measuring outcomes of commissioning decisions taken and policies implemented;
• There was a requirement to be mindful of new and changing legislation and the changing NHS infrastructure;
• Substantial changes were expected in Southampton in the demography of the age of the population at the lower and upper end of the spectrum in the next seven years;
• The JSNA has a role to play in joining the emerging Clinical Commissioning Group and Local Authority via the Health and Wellbeing Board;
• Poverty was considered to encourage ill health and therefore it was thought important to address this issue;
• The Executive Summary needed to be reviewed regarding the language used and should be simplified to enable all to understand;
• The JSNA should signpost health assets which would enhance health and well-being of individuals;
• The integration of Public Health into the Authority will provide an opportunity to improve communication around the role other directorates can play in creating a healthier environment;
• Nine key themes had emerged from the consultation process and these themes had dovetailed with the six Marmot 2010 main policy recommendations.  The following points were highlighted under the themes:

-  Improve Economic Wellbeing – the average gross weekly wage in Southampton was £54 less than other areas in England with many young people living in relative poverty;

-  Take Responsibility for Health – it was considered important to educate and empower people to take responsibility for their own health.  Alcohol-specific hospital admissions for the under 18s in Southampton were high when compared with the rest of the UK. Alcohol in the UK was also relatively cheap when compared with the past and consideration about how to address this issue should be taken into account;

-  Improve Long Term Conditions – the percentage of people living in Southampton with long term medical conditions was increasing and it was considered important to try and prevent these diseases and offer more support to carers;

-  Responding to an Ageing Population - The ageing profile of Southampton was likely to increase the number of people living with disabilities, health conditions and requiring intensive support. It was considered that extending mobility and independence could be improving by encouraged access to additional enjoyable activities and helping people to stay fitter for longer. More activities to discourage social isolation were considered to be a good thing;

-  Creating a Healthy Environment – Ensuring the physical environment helped to promote walking, cycling and safe local recreation and play was considered important. As was the role of related services, for example, by encouraging warm homes, the risk of illness decreased, thereby saving NHS money.