Agenda and minutes

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Contact: Katrina Cope  Senior Democratic Services Officer

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Items
No. Item

50.

Apologies for Absence/Replacement Members

Minutes:

An apology for absence was received from Councillor Mrs Rosemary Kaberry-Brown (South Kesteven District Council).

 

The Committee noted that Councillor Linda Wootten (South Kesteven District Council) had replaced Councillor Mrs Rosemary Kaberry-Browm (South Kesteven District Council) for this meeting only.

 

An apology for absence was also received from Councillor Mrs S Woolley, (Executive Councillor for NHS Liaison and Community Engagement).

51.

Declarations of Members' Interest

Minutes:

No declarations of members' interest were made at this stage of the proceedings.

52.

Minutes of the Health Scrutiny Committee for Lincolnshire meeting held on 16 December 2020 pdf icon PDF 256 KB

Minutes:

RESOLVED

 

That the minutes of the Health Scrutiny Committee for Lincolnshire meeting held on 16 December 2020 be agreed and signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

53.

Chairman's Announcements pdf icon PDF 555 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Further to the Chairman's announcements circulated with the agenda, the Chairman brought to the Committee's attention the supplementary announcements circulated on 18 January 2021.

 

The supplementary announcements provided information on the following:

 

·       The UK Covid-19 Vaccines Delivery Plan;

·       Vaccination Programme in Lincolnshire;

·       Community Testing for Covid-19 in Boston and Lincoln;

·       East Midlands Ambulance Service Performance Report, which was attached to the supplementary announcements at Appendix A;

·       Grantham Hospital – Correspondence with the Government; and

·       Review of Do Not Attempt Resuscitation Cardiopulmonary Decisions during the Covid-19 Pandemic.

 

RESOLVED

 

1.    That the Supplementary Chairman's announcements and the Chairman's announcements as detailed on pages 11 to 17 of the report pack be noted.

 

2.    That the Chairman on behalf of the Committee be authorised to write to the Rt Hon Matt Hancock MP, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, to request for the local NHS to be allowed to share local information on the rate of vaccinations being achieved.

54.

Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust - Covid-19 Update and Engagement Exercise on Urgent Treatment Centres pdf icon PDF 236 KB

(To receive a report from Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust,   which enables the Committee to receive an update on Covid-19 and the Louth and Skegness Urgent Treatment Centre engagement exercise.  Tracy Pilcher, Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Nursing, Allied Health Professionals and Operations will be in attendance for this item)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee gave consideration to a report which provided an update from the Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust (LCHS), concerning Covid-19 and the Louth and Skegness Urgent Treatment Centre (UTC) Engagement Exercise.

 

The Chairman invited Tracy Pilcher, Deputy Chief Executive, and Director of Nursing, Allied Health Professionals and Operations, to present the report which was detailed on pages 19 to 61 of the agenda pack.

 

The following two Appendices were attached to the report, for the Committee to consider:

 

·       Appendix A – Covid-19 Trust Board report to the Board of Directors of Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust Board – 12 January 2021; and

·       Appendix B – Louth and Skegness UTC Engagement Findings report to the Board of Directors of Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust Board – 12 January 2021.

 

The Committee were advised that LCHS were continuing to respond effectively to the Covid-19 pandemic level 4 national emergency which had come into force from 5 November 2020.  It was highlighted that one of the key elements of the response to Covid-19 was the delivery of an effective vaccination programme.  The Committee was advised that the NHS had commenced the national vaccination roll out of the first vaccines on 8 December 2020.  The United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust (ULHT) was one of the first 50 hospital hubs to have been approved to commence vaccinations with the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.  The Committee was advised that LCHS was working with the Lincolnshire system in developing the mass vaccination sites, which would be working alongside the hospital hubs and the Primary Care Network (PCN) locations to maximise delivery to the Lincolnshire population.

 

The Committee noted that LCHS had commenced testing of asymptomatic staff with the introduction of lateral flow testing.  It was noted further that so far there had been approximately a 1% positivity rate.  At the present time LCHS had 20 staff self-isolating.

 

It was reported that integrated urgent care services were a key component of the LCHS response to Covid-19, and that the Clinical Assessment Service (CAS) had been instrumental in supporting patients to be cared for safely at home, and ensuring that patients were only conveyed to hospital if absolutely necessary.  It was noted that CAS capacity had been increased to support the rise in the number of calls through to CAS from East Midlands Ambulance Service crews on scene.  This initiative had commenced at the beginning of November 2020, and had been a direct impact on ambulance conveyance levels. 

 

It was reported that the Grantham Urgent Treatment Centre was still open as a 24/7 walk in facility.  It was noted that activity had remained stable since the service had been transferred, with referrals to Emergency Departments being predominantly below 5%.

 

It was highlighted that as part of the restore programme, Gainsborough Minor Injuries Unit had now re-opened as a UTC, offering a comprehensive range of urgent care services to the local population, including booked appointments and home visiting.

 

The Committee was advised that the organisation had  ...  view the full minutes text for item 54.

55.

Director of Public Health Annual Report 2020 pdf icon PDF 131 KB

(To receive a report from Derek Ward, Director of Public Health, which presents to the Committee the Director of Public Health's Annual Report, which focusses on Covid-19 and the impact of the disease on health and wellbeing in Lincolnshire.  Tony McGinty, Consultant in Public Health will be in attendance for this item)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chairman invited Tony McGinty, Consultant in Public Health, Lincolnshire County Council to present the Director of Public Health Annual Report 2020 to the Committee.

 

Attached to the report at Appendix A was a copy of the Director of Health Annual Report 2020 for the Committee's consideration.

 

In guiding the Committee through the report, particular reference was made to: 

 

·       The impact of Covid-19 in Lincolnshire, page 69, chart 1, of the report pack detailed the number of positive cases each day in Lincolnshire since March 2020;

·       Hospital Admissions, page 71, chart 4, provided information relating to United Lincolnshire Hospital Trust patients admitted or diagnosed with Covid-19 since April 2020;

·       Deaths as a result of Covid-19, page 72, chart 5 of the report pack; advised of the number of deaths in Lincolnshire as at 13 November 2020, as being 370;

·       Care Homes, page 72, chart 6 of the report pack, advised that there had been 277 care homes reporting an outbreak during the Covid-19 pandemic.  It was highlighted that the months September and November had seen the highest number of outbreaks in a month with 73 and 74 respectively;

·       Schools and Education, page 73, chart 6 of the report pack advised of the school outbreaks in Lincolnshire.  The Committee noted that there had been 444 reports of outbreaks by 312 education settings during the Covid-19 pandemic.  The Committee noted further that October saw the highest number of outbreaks, with 165 outbreaks being reported;

·       Multi Agency Response to Covid-19 in Lincolnshire, page 77 of the report pack advised of the work of the Lincolnshire Resilience Forum in continuing to respond in a proactive and coordinated manner to Covid-19 in Lincolnshire; and

·       Longer Term Health and Wellbeing Implications of Covid-19, page 82, Figure 2, provided the Committee with information relating to the expected Covid-19 burden of disease over time. 

 

During discussion, the Committee raised the following points:

 

·       The vaccination programme and to the fact that some residents within the Lincolnshire were being asked to travel long distances to have their vaccination.  The Committee was advised that the vaccination programme was a herculean task; and that Lincolnshire posed lots of challenges with its geography and age profile.  The Committee noted that it was hoped that all adults would have received their vaccination before the winter of 2021;

·       GP support to care homes.  The Committee was advised that as part of the preparation for Covid-19, the public health team had provided support and technology to care homes to assist them in preventing and managing Covid-19.  It was noted that primary care teams had responded in a different ways, with some managing remote consultations;

·       How going forward, vaccination against Covid-19 would be managed.  It was highlighted that at the moment it was not known how long current vaccines would provide protection; and if there were more variants, then vaccines would have to be adapted accordingly, similar to what was currently being done with the flu vaccine.  It was however highlighted that the Covid-19 virus tended not  ...  view the full minutes text for item 55.

56.

United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust - Outpatient Services at Community Hospitals pdf icon PDF 115 KB

(To receive a report from Simon Evans, Health Scrutiny Officer, which advises the Committee of concerns raised in local communities in Lincolnshire on the possibility of changes to the delivery of outpatient services by United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chairman invited Simon Evans, Health Scrutiny Officer, to present the report to the Committee, which highlighted that concerns had been raised in local communities in Lincolnshire on the possibility of changes to the delivery of outpatient services by United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust.

 

The Committee was referred to the recently circulated document, which detailed correspondence between Councillor Carl Macey, Chairman of the Health Scrutiny Committee for Lincolnshire and Andrew Morgan, Chief Executive of United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust, relating to the concerns raised by several county councillors.

 

RESOLVED

 

1.    That the response of the Chief Executive of United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust on outpatient services at community hospitals be noted, which includes statements to the effect that:

 

a.    Owing to Covid-19, discussions with staff on any changes have been suspended;

b.    There is no agreed timetable for discussions with the Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group or Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust; and

c.     Consultation and engagement will take place before any substantial changes or development take place in the provision of services at community hospitals.

 

2.    That the Committee's view that all the county's community hospitals provide a valued contribution to the delivery of NHS services across Lincolnshire be put on record.

 

3.    That an item be added to work programme, specifically to cover any future development at Lincolnshire's community hospitals.

57.

Urgent and Emergency Care - Models of Care and Measurement pdf icon PDF 427 KB

(To receive a report from Simon Evans, Health Scrutiny Officer, which invites the Committee to make arrangements for finalising a response to the 13 questions detailed in the document entitled: Transformation of Urgent and Emergency Care: Models of Care and Engagement)   

Minutes:

The Chairman invited Simon Evans, Health Scrutiny Officer, to present the report, which invited the Committee to make a response to the Transformation of Urgent and Emergency Care: Model of Care and Measurement consultation, which had been launched on 15 December 2020 by NHS England and NHS Improvement.

 

The Committee was referred to the draft response document circulated previously, which had taken on board comments raised by the Committee.

 

RESOLVED

 

That the draft response as circulated be approved as the Committee's response to the consultation on Urgent and Emergency Care – Models of Care and Measurement.

58.

Health Scrutiny Committee for Lincolnshire - Work Programme pdf icon PDF 1 MB

(To receive a report from Simon Evans, Health Scrutiny Officer, which sets out the Committee's work programme, with items listed for forthcoming meetings) 

Minutes:

The Chairman invited Simon Evans, Health Scrutiny Officer, to present the report to the Committee.

 

Consideration was given to the work programme as shown on pages 96 to 97 of the report pack.

 

Items highlighted to be included on the work programme were:

 

·       United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHHS Trust – Outpatient Services at Community Hospitals; and

·       CQC report: Do Not Attempt Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation.

 

RESOLVED

 

That the work programme presented be received subject to the addition of the items listed above.

 

 
 
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