Review of Standards for Health Services in Wales and the Fundamentals of Care Standards

Project Board - Terms of Reference

Purpose of Document
The purpose of this document is to outline the membership and terms of reference of the Project Board whose overall aim is to review the Standards for Health Services in Wales and the Fundamentals of Care Standards resulting in a unified set of standards for people across health and in partnership with social care. The standards will be focused to enable Welsh Government to monitor performance and quality service delivery based on a consistent outcome based approach. The standards will be aligned with professional, Royal Colleges, and NICE quality standards, as well as National Service Frameworks, National Cancer standards, and equivalents, and other regulatory and accreditation requirements”. The project will comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty, United Nations Convention On the Rights of the Child key themes, and Welsh Language requirements. An equality impact assessment report will be published.

This document should be read in conjunction with the Project Brief

Author: Victoria Franklin
Owners: Professor Jean White/Janet Davies
Date: March 2014

Project Objectives

To discharge its function the Project Board will:

·  Ensure the standards are written in a language that the citizens of Wales will easily understand.

·  Develop a standards framework to enable organisations to self assess in order to plan, design, develop and improve services across all health services and in all healthcare settings.

·  Ensure the standards set out the requirements of what is expected - at every level and in every setting. Aiming to drive the way organisations work and practice day in, day out, in the pursuit to provide the safest, highest quality and most efficient care and services for the citizens of Wales.

·  Develop a robust standards framework to enable Welsh Government to monitor performance and quality service delivery based on a consistent outcome based approach.

·  Align the standards with professional, Royal Colleges, and NICE quality standards, as well as National Service Frameworks, National Cancer standards and equivalents and other regulatory and accreditation requirements. Also the Fundamentals of Care Annual Audit.

·  Ensure the project complies with the Public Sector Equality Duty, United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child Key themes. An Equality impact assessment report will be published.

·  Ensure the project aligns with the development of the Social Services, Public Health and NHS Outcome Frameworks.

·  Engage with HIW to ensure they review the underpinning criteria and questions to ensure they reflect achievement of the standards, together with their inspection methodologies. This will ensure the outcome of a robust assessment process alongside the introduction of revised standards.

·  Will consider the way in which clinical / health professional advice is accessed and considered, through the use of reference groups and groups already in existence, for example, patient panels, Medical Directors and Nurse Directors.

·  Take into account the recommendations made by the Mid Staffordshire HNS Foundation Trust Public Enquiry (The Francis Report) that relate to the effectiveness of standards.

·  Ensure communication and engagement with all relevant stakeholders, partners and users.

Role of the Project Board

The role of the Project Board is to bring together key stakeholders in support of the Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) who is responsible for successful project delivery.

The role of the Project Board will retain responsibility and accountability for the quality assurance of the project and will assure the overall direction and integrity of the project.

The Project Board’s purpose is to drive the project forward, providing information, advice and assurance to the SRO on:

·  Strategic and cross-cutting issues and risks that impact on the project;

·  Effectiveness of Communication;

·  Finance and resources management;

·  The adequacy and integrity of governance arrangements;

·  The delivery of the outcomes and benefits; and

·  The resolution of strategic and operational issues from a strategic perspective;

The Board will also be responsible for the orderly closure of the project including signing off the lessons learnt report, end of project report, review and delivery of the benefits realisation and the formal project closure notification.

Meeting Structure and Frequency

The Project Board will meet every 6 to 8 weeks and will cover the following areas:

o  Significant progress to report

o  Significant risks pose threat to delivery

o  Significant issues exist to prevent delivery

o  Management documentation requires approval

o  Reports to be presented (such as Audit/assurance reports)

o  The project has reached an agreed milestone and requires the board to sign off the next stage plan

The calling of extra ordinary meetings and ongoing progress communications is the responsibility of the SRO, supported by the Project Manager.

Meetings should be structured around the appropriate monthly Project Highlight Report.

Papers for the meeting will be circulated 3 working days before the meeting, and notes of the meeting / action points are circulated within 5 working days of the meeting.

Membership

The chairperson will be the Senior Responsible Officer.

Name / Department / Role
Professor Jean White / Nursing / Senior Responsible Officer
Janet Davies / Healthcare Quality Division / Specialist Advisor Quality and Safety
Heather Payne / Maternal and Child Health / Senior Medical Officer
Victoria Franklin / Nursing / Nursing Officer/Project Manager
Martin Semple / Nursing / Nursing Officer Patient Experience
Natalie Harris / Healthcare Quality Division / Lead for NHS Standards and Governance
David Francis / Local Government and Communities / CSSIW Regulator
Alison Kedward / HIW / Clinical Service Advisor
Amira Irshad / Social Services Directorate / Head of Outcomes Standards and performance
Emma Coles / Social Services Directorate / Head of Social Services Regulation and Inspection
Gillian Cashman / Healthcare Quality Division / Sponsorship of Community Health Councils
Mandy Collins / Healthcare Quality Division / Lead for Francis Report
Alison Strode / Public Health / Wales Therapists Lead

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Welsh Government PPM Best Practice Template V1.0 2013