Agenda and minutes

Councillor Hoptroff substituted for Councillor Cawley for part of the meeting,

DECIDED:That the minutes from the meetings held on 12^th February 2020 and 22^nd July 2020 be APPROVED as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

DECIDED: That the minutes of the meeting of the Healthy Staffordshire Select     Committee held on 10^th August 2020 be NOTED.

No urgent items were raised.

·         Disclosable Pecuniary Interests

·         Other Interests

(At least two clear days notice required, in writing, to the Proper Officer in accordance with Procedure Rule 15).

1.    Question received from Councillor Atkins:

“How is the SMDC using its additional money from Government to employ marshalls to check on Covid -19 regulation compliance within the Staffordshire Moorlands?”

Response:

The Council was notified last Thursday that it would receive additional funding of £39,516 to support compliance with and enforcement of Covid-19 regulations in the District. Officers are continuing to work with partners, in particular Staffordshire County Council and Public Health England, alongside our voluntary groups and Staffordshire Police, to ensure that the correct targeted messages are circulated over the next few weeks, and additional enforcement  and community options are currently being considered around the need for a visible officer presence to support residents and businesses within the high foot fall areas of the District. The approach will include and coordinate with the activity of all of our partners, the exact model has not yet been agreed, however, meetings are taking place over the coming days to develop this approach and further updates will be provided to all councillors.

Councillor Atkins stressed the importance of businesses, residents and visitors being compliant with the Covid-19 regulations for the avoidance of the area being placed into Tier 2 and that a visible presence of officers would assist with this. There was also concern around the mobile testing unit in Leek and the lack of local control with the Test and Trace system. The Portfolio Holder confirmed that the Council’s Environmental Health & Licencing Team had ensured the rules had been complied with and would request that the issues raised in regard to the mobile testing unit were looked into.

At this point of the meeting, Councillor Atkins expected to have received a written response to her enquiry in relation to the CCG’s decision to withdraw hearing aids for people with mild to moderate hearing loss. Tracey Shewan – Director of Communications and Corporate Services, North Staffordshire Clinical Commissioning Group, advised that a response had been sent but she would look into this and discuss further at the relevant agenda item later in the meeting. 

·         Tracey Shewan - Director of Communications and Corporate Services, North Staffordshire Clinical Commissioning Group

·         Gemma Smith – Deputy Director of Commissioning – Partnerships and Integration, North Staffordshire Clinical Commissioning Group

·         Jennie Collier - Managing Director, Staffordshire & Stoke-on-Trent Care Group,Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

·         Katie Dale - Head of Communications, Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

The following officers were present at the meeting for this agenda item:-

-       Tracey Shewan - Director of Communications and Corporate Services, North Staffordshire Clinical Commissioning Group

-       Jennie Collier - Managing Director, Staffordshire & Stoke-on-Trent Care Group,Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (MPFT)

-       Katie Dale - Head of Communications, Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and;

-       Mark Seaton - Managing Director Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Clinical Commissioning Group

Jennie Collier introduced a presentation which included detail on the following subject areas:-

·         Response to Covid-19

·         Work with Health & Social Care organisations

·         Workforce issues due to isolation and Covid-19

·         Community hospital beds and acute beds for Covid-19 patients should they be required

·         Collaboration with partners

·         End of life pathways

·         Covid-19 rehabilitation needs assessment and pathway

·         Mental and physical support needs

·         Leek Minor Injuries Unit (MIU)

·         Consolidation of workforce to meet demands

·         Movement of clinics to Leek Community Hospital

·         Development of integrated care

·         National Hospital Discharge Policy

·         Integrated Care Teams

·         Self-Care Model

In response to queries, members were advised that the clinics which were due to be moved to Leek Moorlands Hospital were in addition to the existing clinics based there and the Physiotherapy Services were now fully restored. The Panel was given assurance that the MPFT was not aware of and did not support blanket ‘Do not resuscitate’ statements.

The Panel debated the long term effects of the Coronavirus,  mental health, closure of the Kniveden Project , discharge pathways to dedicated facilities able to isolate patients with Covid-19 and the research project at Cheadle Hospital.

Members were concerned about the temporary closure of Leek MIU, highlighted the difficulty travelling on public transport to alternative hospitals and the loss of staff due to redeployment. Officers agreed that Leek MIU was a valuable facility, were committed to the re-opening of the facility once it was safe to do so and recognised the impact in terms of distance and access to services. Alternative primary care provision such as NHS 111 and GP’s were reiterated.

Staffing and recruitment was an ongoing challenge for the MPFT. Officers explained that as part of the Covid-surge plans, local hospitals had been staffed by other services which had been stepped down. Rather than staff being redeployed to support the Nightingale Hospital in Birmingham, it was preferable to provide this local solution.

The monthly attendance figures for Leek Minor Injuries Unit were requested and clarification of the clinics available at Cheadle Hospital.

Tracey Shewan had noted councillors’ comments in regard to the Kniveden Project being re-opened and would discuss the matter with her colleagues at North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust.

Jennie Collier welcomed Councillor Flunder’s suggestion for the Councillors Community Initiative Fund potentially being used to increase local community support around social isolation.

Flu vaccinations were given in a phased approach and a significant increase to the numbers of people that had requested the vaccine had been seen. Members shared the difficulties some residents had encountered to receive  the vaccination. The Panel was assured that there was enough of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 85.

At the request of a member of the Panel, Tony Bullock – Lead Commissioner, Public Health Commissioning at SCC, provided a presentation on the Drug and Alcohol Service. The presentation gave information around; the background of the service, work undertaken between 2016-2020, tenders, Covid-19 and the future of the service.

Human Kind had recently been contracted to provide the Staffordshire Treatment and Recovery Service. The service at Russell Street would remain open and outreach facilities were available in Cheadle and Biddulph. An increased number of frontline staff were available, there were plans to expand the service, increase support for carers and work more closely with other agencies. The Panel was pleased that the Russell Street facility would continue to operate.

In response to a query, the officer confirmed that, unfortunately, there was little evidence locally or nationally to measure the impact of drug and alcohol services. It was hoped that in time more analysis could be carried out alongside the two local universities.

Discussion also took place around increased demand to access the service due to the pandemic. Covid-19 protocols had been developed by Human Kind to ensure clients could still access their services. Despite many clients with underlying health issues, an increase in demand had only recently been noticed and the service had managed well.

Tony Bullock was thanked for his excellent presentation and for the continuity he had given to the Drug and Alcohol Service.

DECIDED: That the presentation be noted.

Any additional items to be added to the Work Programme:-

i)          Chairman’s items;

ii)         Members items;

DECIDED: That the Panel’s Work Programme be agreed, subject to, the following items being added:-

·         Rural provision of the Ambulance Service

·         Ongoing update on Leek MIU and the Integrated Care Hub