Agenda and minutes

To note any changes in membership of the Panel made in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4.3.

To approve and sign as a correct record the Minutes of the meetings held on
29 July 2010 and to deal with any matters arising, attached.

RESOLVED that the minutes for the Scrutiny Panel B Meeting on 29^th July 2010 be approved and signed as a correct record.  (Copy of the minutes circulated with the agenda and appended to the signed minutes).

Report, of the Head of Policy and Performance, detailing for discussion the current Government White Paper attached.  

The Panel considered the report, of the Head of Policy and Performance, detailing for discussion the current Government White Paper. (Copy of the report circulated with the agenda and appended to the signed Minutes).

Penny Furness-Smith (Executive Director Health and Adult Care Southampton City Council) and Bob Deans (Executive Director of NHS Southampton City) detailed the presentation circulated with the papers and answered questions on the following topics:

• the effect of transition to the new arrangements on staff and performance;
• whether it was possible to complete the proposed transfer to the GP consortiums by 2013 and whether the necessary transition steps can be put in place before the Strategic Health Authorities are disbanded in 2012;
• the potential make up and constitutional arrangements of the proposed  NHS Commissioning Board;
• the establishment of Health Watch nationally and locally. In particular the Panel questioned the funding for proposed body and noted the expectation that the basis of the new organisation would be the existing Local Involvement Networks. The Panel questioned the proposed make up of the new organisation as to whether they would be staffed by volunteers or by paid members of staff;
• it was noted the funding for the Slink this was due to expire in June of 2011 and the Panel questioned what ,if any, measures currently existed for the period prior to the establishment of the new Health Watch organisation.
• the development of the Health and Wellbeing Board into a statutory body;
• the definition of Health Outcomes and the transition process involved in moving to these and away from performance targets; and
• the steps taken to avoid the focus of the health service being changed from the provision of health care and not ability to generate profit by the developing GP consortia.

RESOLVED

(i)  that the Panel thanked the presenters and noted the responses to its questions; and

(ii)  that the Panel delegated authority the Chair to co-ordinate electronically a response to the consultation on the white paper.

Report, of the Executive Director for Unscheduled Care for Southampton, Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Portsmouth (SHIP) outlining the proposals for a model of unscheduled care within the region, attached

The Panel considered the report, of the Executive Director for Unscheduled Care for Southampton, Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Portsmouth (SHIP) outlining the proposals for a model of unscheduled care within the region. (Copy of the report circulated with the agenda and appended to the signed minutes).

Dr David Payton, Executive Director for Unscheduled Care (SHIP), detailed the presentation circulated with the papers and answered questions on the following topics:

• the capacity of the healthcare network to address out of hours service need;
• the transition timescales and process for the introduction of any new proposals;
• how members of the public will be informed of the changes to services and what impression any change will have on them;
• the need from improved communications and integration within the services; and
• how the walk in centres fit into the pattern of health provision across the region.

RESOLVED

(i)  that the Panel thanked the presenter and noted the responses to its questions; and

(ii)  that the Panel delegated authority to the Chair to co-ordinate electronically a response to the consultation on the white paper.

Report, of the Director of Health and Adult Social Care, detailing the work underway in relation to unscheduled care in East Southampton and the options for the future of Bitterne Walk in Centre, attached.

The Panel considered the report, of the Director of Health and Adult Social Care, detailing the work underway in relation to unscheduled care in East Southampton and the options for the future of Bitterne Walk in Centre. (Copy of the report circulated with the agenda and appended to the signed minutes)

Dr Adrian Higgins, Chair of the Clinical Leadership Board for NHS Southampton City, detailed the presentation circulated with the papers and answered questions on the following topics:

• the rules regarding the transfer of costs from users of the Bitterne walk-in-centre (Bwic) to neighbouring authorities;
• the breakdown of the users of the Bwic  including those from outside Southampton;
• who the main users of the Bwic were;
• the types of treatment provided by the Bwic and the numbers of people receiving care;
• whether capacity of the Local GP surgeries would be sufficient to service the needs of the area should the hours of the Bwic be amended or the facility closed;
• the need for a full range of options relating to the Bwic had been discussed and the alarm this had caused in the area;
• what measures were in place to ensure a consistency of out of hours service provision and the hours of GP surgeries;
• the need to view the provision of health care in the East of the City as a whole. Ensuring that no disparity of service is created with the West and that the requirements of the residents are catered for;
• whether the local GP surgeries had been consulted ; and
• the effects of the closure of the Shirley walk-in-centre on accident and emergency demand.

RESOLVED

(i)  that the Panel thanked the presenter and noted the responses to its questions; and

(ii)  that the Panel delegated authority to the Chair to co-ordinate electronically a response to the consultation on the white paper.

(iii)  requested the costs of the Bitterne Walk in Centre prior to 2009-2010.