NHS GRAMPIAN
Minute of the Grampian Area Partnership Forum (GAPF)
held on Wednesday 13 June 2012 at 2.00pm
in Conference Room, Summerfield House
Present:
Sharon Duncan, Employee Director (Chairperson)
Richard Carey, Chief Executive
Mike Adams, UCATT
Noelle Boddie, Unit Nurse Manager (deputy for Alison Hardy)
Jim Clark, GMB
Bill Cowling, Project Manager Mental Health
Ian Francis, CSP
Alistair Grant, RCN
Laura Gray, Director of Corporate Communications
Jenny Greener, Non-Executive Director
Annie Ingram, Director of Workforce
Steven Lindsay, UNITE
Deirdre McIntyre, SOCAP
Sandra-Dee Masson, BAOT
Gary Mortimer, General Manager Facilities and Estates
Mike Ogg, General Manager Aberdeenshire CHP (deputy for Sandy Dustan)
Clare Ruxton, Deputy Director of Workforce
Vincent Shields, General Manager Acute Services
Elinor Smith, Director of Nursing
Joan Anderson, Partnership Support Officer
In Attendance:
Gerry Lawrie, Workforce Development and Redesign Manager - for item 5a
Diane Annand, HR Team Leader – for item 5h
Item / Subject / Action1 / Apologies
Apologies were received from Sandy Dustan, General Manager, Aberdeenshire (Mike Ogg deputised, Pauline Strachan, Chief Operating Officer (no deputy), Frances Dunne, Service Manager, Aberdeen City CHP (Christina Cameron deputised), Eileen Grant, GHP (no deputy available), Alan Gray, Director of Finance (no deputy available), Alison Hardy, Clinical Nurse Manager (Noelle Boddie deputised), Martin McKay, UNISON (no deputy available), Anne Ross, Head of Performance & Quality Improvement (no deputy), Kirsten Sawers, RCM (no deputy available), Mike Scott, Chair of the Staff Governance Committee (no deputy available), Duncan Stephen, ACB (no deputy), Keith Thomson, Interim Health and Safety Lead (no deputy)
2 / Minute of Last Meeting held on 16 May 2012
The minute of the last meeting held on 16 May 2012 was approved.
3 / Matters Arising
a.Review of 12 Hour Shifts
Annie Ingram explained that she had discussed the review of 12 hour shifts with Keith Thomson, Interim Head of Health and Safety and Pauline Strachan, Chief Operating Officer, and it had been agreed that the review would be across NHS Grampian and information gained from an audit undertaken in Acute would be used to assist the process. A paper would be presented to GAPF at the next meeting.
b.Voluntary Severance Scheme (VS)
Clare Ruxton reported that the closing date to request an application for VS had been 31 May. 140 requests were made which was less than last year (294). The closing date for formal applications was 13 July and to date 8 formal applications had been received. / AI/KT
4 / Facilities Sector Partnership Presentation
It was agreed to defer this presentation to a future meeting.
5 / Developing the Workforce and Empowering Staff
a.Workforce Planning/Safe Affordable Workforce
Gerry Lawrie attended the meeting to present the final workforce plan which had been approved at the NHS Grampian Board the day before. There were not a lot of amendments from the previous draft the GAPF had seen.
The plan included work with other parties eg Local Authorities and unpaid carers. The whole time equivalent numbers of staff had reduced by 80 from the previous year.
The projections paper had been signed off but would not be available until August.
Opportunities for workforce efficiencies may show an increase of some types of staff eg admin and clerical staff taking on admin roles from clinical staff to allow clinical staff to concentrate on clinical work.
There were difficulties retaining estates, ehealth and health visiting staff.
b.Knowledge and Skills Framework
Sandra-Dee Masson reported that NHS Grampian was still behind with figures for Personal Development Plans (PDP) and Reviews. Learning and Development Staff had done a trawl for staff who had a PDP or review but had not signed it off but this did not raise the figure of 500 much. There was an audit every six months on these figures for the Scottish Government.
Many staff and managers were used to having a March sign off date so they needed encouragement to spread the reviews over the year and it was agreed to put out a communication to staff regarding this and repeat the communication in two months.
Training and e-learning packs were being developed for eKSF.
More consistency checkers for ksf outlines were required. Requested were one staff side and one management from nursing and midwifery, facilities, AHP, admin and clerical and two each from science and technology, estates and pharmacy.
c.Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG)
Clare Ruxton explained that the report circulated to the group was to dispel the myth that PVG takes a long time. Initially it did, but it was now down to 6 days so it was not this which delayed the recruitment period. Most of the time delay is in the applicant completing the paperwork ready to send off.
It was noted that a communication had been received from the Management Steering Group, advising employers that they should now seek to charge employees at band 5 and above for the check. The staff side chair of Scottish Terms and Conditions Committee (STAC) had subsequently written to the secretary of Management Steering Group (MSG), seeking to resolve the issue in partnership. NHS Grampian would continue to pay PVG until the issue had been resolved nationally. A paper would be presented to the next GAPF on this.
d.Scottish Terms and Conditions Committee Update (STAC) –
Sharon Duncan had written to the Staff Side Secretariat of STAC asking for regular feedback. Unfortunately the response was that an update would not be given to Area Partnership Forums and that she was to check the website or contact own Union. Sharon had written back explaining the website was out of date and she was writing as Employee Director not as a member of a trade union. No response had been received to date.
e.eESS (electronic Employee Support System)
Clare Ruxton updated the group on the process for introducing eESS. The first pilot was working out some glitches prior to going live. NHS Grampian was phase 4 which was expected to be delayed further.
There was a Joint Implementation Board looking at eESS, epayroll, efinance and eHR and would report to Boards. Sharon Duncan was the partnership representative on the group.
Once a better idea of timescale was known for phase 4 Philip Shipman would attend GAPF to explain in detail all about the process.
It was highlighted that the amount of work involved to move to the new process was not to be underestimated. It would be helpful to the process if establishments were all correct prior to implementation.
Lynn Marsland was leading the Shared Services Group which had been given the task of showing the benefits of eESS.
f.GAPF Away Day Events Update
A different process for GAPF Away Events was planned for this year. Each Sector Partnership Forum was being asked to plan an event which would co-incide with a GAPF meeting and the GAPF meeting would take place in the afternoon at the venue chosen for the away event in the morning. It may not be possible for all events to take place this calendar year so it was expected these would go over into 2013.
Aberdeenshire had planned their away event for 10 October 2012 therefore the GAPF meeting in October would be held in ChalmersHospital, Banff.
g.Application for local Recruitment and Retention Premia (RRP) for Craftsperson: Electrical/Mechanical/Plumbing/Technician/
Estates Supervisor
Gary Mortimer explained the application for RRP which had been fully discussed in Partnership and had been approved by the Terms and Conditions Sub-Group and was presented to GAPF for support.
Those currently in receipt of RRP were losing this payment in stages. It was reduced by 50% on 1 April 2012 and would be fully removed by 1 April 2013.
In Grampian there was a particular recruitment and retention problem with these staff because of the buoyant employment and the oil industries.
The bands these staff were paid at was similar to semi-skilled staff in other organisations in Grampian. If staff left or could not be recruited to these posts the work would have to be contracted out which cost much more.
The application was supported fully by GAPF and Richard Carey and Sharon Duncan would sign it off and it was agreed to send it both to the Management Steering Group and the Staff Side Secretariat of Scottish Terms and Conditions Committee (STAC) to ensure it was put on the agenda. Thanks were given to Diane Annand and the Terms and Conditions Sub-Group for all the assistance they had given to ensure the application was robust. It was a very good example of Partnership Working where everyone was focussing on the same goal.
Richard Carey asked if there was anything else that could be done to ensure this application is approved by STAC.
It was felt that a risk assessment should be undertaken by national groups before they implement changes such as this, given that so much work had to be put into trying to get back something that had just been taken away.
Perfusionists had asked GAPF for support for an application for RRP some time ago which was given but no application had been received. It was believed that a reviewer was coming up from England as they had a disparity with bandings compared to England NHS.
Health Visitors had a concern around recruitment, mainly in AberdeenCity area. There was collaboration ongoing regarding encouraging more staff to go through training. Discussions with RobertGordonsUniversitywere taking place with regard to long term planning. It was felt to be quite difficult to plan for future services as there would be many changes in the way services would be run in the future.
h.Contract changes in relation to annual leave and working time directive following CEL 15 (2011)
Diane Annand attended the meeting to ask for approval of the paper from the Terms and Conditions Sub-Group regarding annual leave for bank staff. Agreement had been reached some time ago for the payment of annual leave for bank staff. There would be no change to this agreement but awareness needed to be raised and therefore three actions were approved – change in contract wording, global email and a letter to be sent to bank workers. The paper wording would be amended to read Working Time Regulations rather than Directive. / SDM/LG
All
CR
Sectors
SD/RC
DA
6
* / Staff Governance Action Plan
Jeff Melville and Clare Ruxton presented the Staff Governance Action Plan 2011/12 for approval. The forum approved the Action Plan and commended it for having so many actions completed.
Workshop
A workshop took place to look at the Five new Staff Governance Standards to brainstorm the beginning of the Staff Governance Action Plan 2012/13. Each group considered one standard and came up with three actions each. Jeff Melville took away the feedback and agreed to collate this (attached). / JM
7 / Delivering Safe, Effective & Timely Care in the Right Place
a.Health and Safety in NHS Grampian
Annie Ingram updated the group on health and safety. Plans were progressing to appoint a new Head of Health and Safety. Discussions had taken place with colleagues in Tayside.
Annie Ingram said that good health and safety was an important aspect of patient safety and that the corporate Occupational Health and Safety Committee were currently refreshing the strategic approach.
She said that she and Keith Thomson were going to meet with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Work was ongoing regarding improving risk assessments, training, recruiting health and safety representatives and encouraging staff to be involved in health and safety.
There were a number of fire issues across NHS Grampian which were being worked on along with Grampian Fire and Rescue Service. The Fire Safety Management Group had been reinvigorated and was now reporting to the Occupational Health and Safety Committee. Fire issues were to be reported to Stewart Rogerson or Keith Thomson in the first instance. Gary Mortimer stated that he was satisfied that all that was needed was being done.
b.Emergency Care Centre Update (ECC)
Gary Mortimer reported that there was a VIP event organised by NHS Grampian and Robertson Contractors. It was a very professional evening.
The moving plan was well underway and Pickfords had stated it was the most prepared organisation they had been associated with for a move of this nature.
There were further staff engagement events planned and a communications group had been set up to ensure communications to staff, patients, politicians, public, etc. There were opportunities to visit the building prior to opening running up to the end of November.
The NHS Grampian Board approved the next stage of reconfiguration following the move into the Emergency Care Centre.
8 / Improving Efficiency, Productivity and Sustainability
a.NHS Financial Report Update
This item was deferred to the next meeting.
b.Financial and General Reports from Sectors – General Managers
This item was deferred to the next meeting.
9 / Improving the Public’s Health and Reducing Inequalities
No Items.
10 / Any Other Competent Business
None.
11 / Communication to Organisation from GAPF
Communications to staff and managers regarding personal development plans and reviews to encourage them to spread the signing off of reviews over the year rather than leaving them all to March. / SDM/LG
12 / Date and Time of Next Meeting
The next meeting will be held on 2pm to 4pm Wednesday 18 July 2012 in the Dental Centre, SpynieHospital, Moray.
Joan Anderson
Partnership Support Officer
Summerfield House
Tel 558459
Email:
1