Agenda item - Chair's Communications

The Chair of the Board will start the meeting with a short update on recent developments on health and wellbeing.

38.1         The Chair welcomed Dr. Mans Sikdar, to the meeting and noted that he had taken over from Dr Darren Emilianous as one of our CCG Board members.

South East Coast Ambulance Service

38.2         The Chair stated that SECAMB had been in the local and national press as a result of significant concern about governance and decision making and the subsequent impact on resident’s health outcomes.  He noted that there were reports available that provide the detail.

38.3         SECAMB covers 6 upper tier authorities.  Each authority has their own Health and Wellbeing Board, Scrutiny arrangements and Healthwatch.

38.4         In an effort to try and reduce duplication contact has been made with lead officers from the different authorities. Various meetings have been taking place across the 6 authorities to try and get a deeper understanding as to what happened, how it happened and next steps. I know OSC will be looking at this across the areas concerned.

38.5         One of the key responsibilities of the HWB is to sign off the pharmaceutical needs assessment. This was done in March 2015 and will next be formally refreshed by March 2018. I have been notified through the PNA steering group (which oversees and monitors changes on our behalf) that one chemist in the city  has closed, Boots in Preston Drove. However considering the number of alternative chemists in the area and supported by the views of NHSE there is no need for further action at this time.

Children and Young Peoples Mental Health Transformation Plan

38.6         This plan has come to the Board several times so I now pleased to be able to report that we have received the Transformation Plan funds of £373,000 into the CCG budget, although have yet had any formal response from NHS England.  The plan is now published on the CCG website’ The next steps are:

-                 Update the project plans and actions plans (Dec 2015)

-                 Start implementation (Dec 2015 onwards)

-                 Report back to HWB

38.7         To note that a Transformation Plan will need to be updated and re-published each year on the CCG website (autumn 2016).

Rough Sleeping Strategy Scoping Consultation

38.8         The council has begun the scoping consultation to develop the city’s new Rough Sleeping Strategy.

38.9         If the city does not reduce rough sleeping there will be:

More health problems and early deaths

More suffering and hardship

Crisis pressure on the Police, hospital accident and  emergency and other services

Crime and anti-social behaviour associated with rough sleeping and street drinking

Increased costs to the local authority, Police and NHS

Reputation damage as a caring city

Tourism impact from street begging

38.10      A Position Paper has been produced to help frame the consultation that summarises the city’s current approach to rough sleeping and existing plans as well as highlighting the challenges we face which has a number of questions for stakeholders about our approach.

38.11      I also had the pleasure of attending a summit on 4 December to hear first-hand about ideas for improving the way the city works in partnership together to tackle rough sleeping.

38.12      The summit endorsed a winter campaign to raise awareness of how residents can help rough sleepers. The campaign provides two actions people can take straight away:

38.13      Firstly, people are encouraged to use Streetlink, a website and mobile app to share information about the location of rough sleepers so details can be given to outreach workers for action.

38.14      Secondly, donations can be made through a JustGiving page to St Mungo’s Broadway, the charity which provides outreach care in Brighton & Hove for people sleeping rough. The money raised is dedicated for the city.

38.15      I urge you all to respond to the consultation and share your thoughts and those of your constituents about how we can deliver our vision “To make sure no-one has the need to sleep rough in Brighton & Hove by 2020.”

38.16      Comments on this initial stage are welcome throughout December and will be used to help develop the city’s draft Rough Sleeping Strategy which will be ready in spring 2016.

HIV testing week

38.17      The high profile ‘Its starts with me’ campaign this year was obvious in the city. The posters promoting testing were displayed on buses and also in bus shelters. The Terrace Higgins Trust opened their office for HIV testing from 10am – 5pm each day and city GP’s promoted safe sex as well as offering HIV testing to all men and all African women who were having any blood test that week. Public Health England have launched a free HIV sample service  and key risk groups can go on line and order a free blood sampling kit. The results will be returned to them with details of local services within 5 days. We do not have any data about impact or take up yet. 

38.18      The Sugar debate has engaged more than 1100 people across the city. The online debate closed on November 30th.  We thank you for your contributions and are currently analysing the quantitative and qualitative results.  A report summarising the results and sugar smart action plan will come to the Health and Wellbeing Board in the New Year.

38.19      Brighton & Hove Impetus is convening a round table discussion on the 20th of January to consider the current experiences of parents with learning disabilities in BHCC, their right to access long-term support with parenting, appropriate assessments, and how this could work in theory and in practice in our City.

38.20       A panel of experts from other local authority areas, national and local charities and the legal profession will present on these topics and be available for discussion throughout the day. Members of the Health & Wellbeing Board, key Officers and local professionals will be invited to attend. 

38.21       Matthew Kershaw, the Chief Executive of Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals (BSUH), which runs the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton and the Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath, will be leaving at Christmas to take up the role of Chief Executive of East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust. Matthew has been Chief Executive of BSUH for three years. Following Matthew’s departure the Deputy Chief Executive Amanda Fadero will act as interim Chief Executive whilst the Board and Trust Development Authority undertake a full recruitment process for a substantive successor. I know Board members will want to   give our thanks to Matthew as well wish him every success in his new role.

38.22      John Child will be starting as the Chief Operating Officer of the CCG on 1^st February. I am sure we will all welcome him on his second day in his new role at our next Board meeting.

38.23      NHS England has awarded 11 Celebrating Participation in Healthcare grants, to community groups and organisations that have developed innovative and creative ways to get patients and the public involved in shaping healthcare services. Two of the grants have been awarded to Brighton and Hove projects.

38.24      One of them is Mind in Brighton and Hove’s LiVE Project which aims to support people with lived experience of mental health issues to develop diverse and varied approaches to engagement to help shape local services. The other is a joint project between Healthwatch Brighton & Hove and the Jaffa Panel (run by Brighton & Sussex University Hospitals Trust) which will be used to film work showing how patients and the public have contributed to shaping new health research ideas across the Trust.