Agenda item

(To receive a report concerning the Stanford Hall Rehabilitation Estate (south Nottinghamshire) as part of the National Rehabilitation Centre Programme.  Hazel Buchanan, Director of Strategy, Greater Nottinghamshire CCGs, and James Wright, Project Manager, National Rehabilitation Centre Programme will be in attendance for this item)

Consideration was given to a report and presentation by Hazel Buchanan (Director of Strategy, Greater Nottinghamshire Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs)) and James Wright (Project Manager, National Rehabilitation Centre Programme), which provided information on the proposal for an NHS Rehabilitation Centre at Stanford Hall.

The Committee was advised that the CCGs in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, along with Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH), were preparing a pre-consultation business case on the proposed development for the NHS Rehabilitation Centre (NRC) at Stanford Hall near Loughborough, on the same site as the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre.  This formed part of a wider vision for a National Rehabilitation Centre that would consist of an NHS clinical service, an education centre and research and innovation hub on the Stanford Hall Rehabilitation Estate. 

A six week consultation period was planned in order to inform the decision on whether to take forward the option of an NRC, including the proposed transfer of existing services to the new facility.  The proposal was currently progressing through the NHS England Assurance Process as part of Planning, Assuring and Delivering Service Change, which would inform the next steps.

The proposal outlined a case for a new 64-bed clinical facility which would support Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH), as a major trauma centre and as such, provide services to the East Midlands Trauma Network, including the NHS in Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire.  Detailed planning consent had been received for the proposed NRC and the Government had agreed an allocation of £70m capital funding specifically for an NHS Rehabilitation Centre on the Stanford Hall Estate. 

The proposal for an NRC would result in a net increase of 40 rehabilitation beds across the East Midlands Trauma Network and the facilities would allow for a clinical model providing services to patients with fractures following trauma and other conditions, where currently rehabilitation was provided predominantly for neurological patients.  It was hoped that the NRC would open in February 2024.

In response to a question, it was noted that specialist rehabilitation services were commissioned and provided across two different levels based on complexity of need.  Level 1 and 2a services were the most complex and were provided across a wider area than level 2b services.  Within current services across the East Midlands Trauma Network, specialist rehabilitation was only accessible to neurological patients with a level 1 unit in Leicestershire; level 2a units in Leicestershire and Lincolnshire; and Level 2b units in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. 

During discussion of the report, the following points were noted:

·         The Committee welcomed and supported the proposal, as set out in the report, and wished to participate in the forthcoming consultation.

·         The Committee was pleased that family rooms would be provided at the Centre and at no charge to the families.  It was recognised that this would help reduce feelings of isolation.

·         Reference was made to the central aim of the NRC to return patients to life and work thereby reducing the long-term dependency on health care, financial and other support.  It was confirmed that it would not always be possible for patients to return to work and therefore it was about the centre supporting patients to achieve personal goals and to improve their quality of life.

·         The cohort of patients and the proposed criteria of accessing the NRC were discussed.  It was confirmed that the CCGs did not want to restrict the admission criteria and they would be dependent on individual need.

·         The current waiting times to access rehabilitation services across the East Midlands was as follows: Nottinghamshire: 11 days in Derbyshire: 24 days; and the Ashby Unit in Lincolnshire: 43 days.  It was anticipated that the proposed NRC would free capacity and reduce waiting times at these centres.

·         The six week consultation would involve engaging with focus groups; surveys; and liaising with engagement leads in relevant CCGs.  It was noted that two local groups in Lincolnshire had requested to be involved in the consultation.  The Committee was requested to advise officers of any interest groups that may wish to be involved.

RESOLVED

(1)  That the report and comments be noted.

(2)  That the Committee be engaged on the six week consultation.