APPROVED
NHS GRAMPIAN
Minute of the Area Clinical Forum Meeting
held on Wednesday 25th February 2009 at 6.00pm
in the Conference Room, Summerfield House
Present
Dr John Reid, Chair
Dr David Fowler
Mrs Linda Juroszek
Mr David Knight
Mr Graeme Shand
Mrs Elizabeth Squires
Mrs Jennie Tait
By Invitation
Mrs Elinor Smith, Director of Nursing
In Attendance
Helen Murray, Clerk to the Professional Advisory Committees
Item / Subject / Action1. / Chair’s Welcome
The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.
2, / Apologies
Apologies received from Fiona Arris, Fiona McKenzie, Lesley Wilkie and Roelf Dijkhuizen.
3. / Notes of Meeting held on 28 January 2009
Minutes approved as true record.
4. / Matters Arising
Emergency Care Centre
There is ongoing discussion. Potential for moving bleeding unit and Coronary Care unit to 4th floor. Consideration also being given to provision of two extra floors, one for cancer care and the other for a general medical ward including geriatric medicine. Radiologists are still having discussions around provision of radiology in the Emergency Care Centre and Foresterhill as a whole.
5. / Area Clinical Forum Intranet
Helen Murray to set up and maintain the websites for all the Advisory Committees. Discussion around what would be required eg constitution, membership, minutes, newsletters. It was agreed that this would depend on who had access to this. Intranet access should be available for use of all professionals but may not be available to Optometrists. If information is put on Internet the content would have to be carefully administered. Helen Murray to meet with IT to discuss these issues and report back to next meeting. / HM
6. / Health Care Assistants Training Report
Linda Harper had prepared this report as a result of an audit of Health Care Assistants in practices and training requirements. The plan is to look at developing training for Health Care Assistants in practices, as at the moment the Health Care Assistants have varying degrees of qualifications and training. This proposed new training package would be practice specific and would enable Health Care Assistants to develop to the different levels required.
It was generally agreed that this was a very good report, which would allow Health Care Assistants to develop their skills and provide a proper career structure. It was suggested that this training could be rolled out to other areas as joint working and access to joint training are seen very much as the way forward. There is definitely a move towards increasing the use of lower grade staff to work alongside higher grade nursing staff in hospitals. These staff when trained could be used as generic care workers. Capability and governance issues would be covered by the training.
There has been a healthcare support workers pilot done nationally which NHS Grampian has not been involved in.
It was thought that this training should be linked in with the Workforce Planning Team. Chair to write letter to Linda Harper congratulating her on the work she has done. / JR
7. / Review of Fatal Accident Enquiry Legislation
The Committee has been asked by Richard Carey to provide feedback on this Review, which had been circulated with the papers.
Answers to questions –
1.No.
2.Yes, it gives the correct impression that this is an important issue and Courts are well aware of facilities they need to provide children etc.
3.Yes, you would get some standardisation.
4.Yes, if it speeded things up and was more practical for the relatives it would be a benefit.
5.It should be kept together and as one investigation.
6.No.
7.Yes.
8.No.
9.Yes.
10.Do not know.
11.Probably not.
12.We would need to know more details about the process.
13.If centralised yes, if not centralised no.
14.Refer to Procurator Fiscal for guidance.
15.Yes, but with option of calling people in to give evidence if appropriate.
16.Within appropriate resources. They should seek independent witnesses from professional bodies.
17. If centralised, then yes.
18.Yes.
19.Yes.
20.Yes.
21.Yes.
22.Yes.
Chair to pass on these comments. / JR
8. / Revised Dates of Meetings
A revised list of dates were issued at the meeting, and these were agreed –
22nd April
24th June
26th August
28th October
Dates can be reviewed again if necessary.
Accountability Review on 22nd October, therefore meeting may be required between August and October to prepare presentation.
9. / Current Issues from the Advisory Committees:-
9.1 / AHPC
Acting arrangements for the professional head of Occupational Health have been in place for some time, now looking to get this formalised. Also looking at AHP leadership arrangements.
9.2 / AOC
Lecture sessions for the PGD training have been held. However due to the large numbers that turned up for the training we have to re-think the way forward.
NES is funding 120 optometrists to go through Independent Prescribing for Optometrists Course in Glasgow. This is a two day course with distance learning which includes 12 days in a practice setting. The 12 day practice setting would be an issue for Optometrists in NHS Grampian. It was also highlighted that those who have the IP qualification cannot yet use it. Chair and Linda Juroszek both offered to write to George Downie regarding these issues but Graeme Shand is to get some more information and report back. Ms Juroszek agreed to flag this up informally in the meantime.
Election notices for membership of the AOC had been sent out but there had only been 3 nominations for the 5 places that need to be filled. It is hoped to raise more interest. / GS
9.3 / APC
The APC continues to deal with a number of requests for relocations or inclusion in the pharmaceutical list as per the existing legislation on control of entry: National Health Service ( Pharmaceutical Service) (Scotland) Regulations 1995. The legislation was to be reviewed but this has not happened yet.
Pressures on the prescribing budget continue as the volume of prescribing continues to rise. Cost- effective prescribing and strategies to minimise waste are vital to remain with budget.
9.4 / GANMAC
The next meeting is 10th March. Issues for next meeting include – productive ward, community hospitals, senior charge nurse review and looking at membership and commitment. A half day workshop is planned for the end of April.
9.5 / Healthcare Science Forum
Mrs Tait reported that Modernising Scientific Careers (MSC) had the potential to introduce a major change into the way the healthcare science workforce was structured and trained. It envisaged the workforce configured into three groups: Healthcare Science Assistants (HCSA), Healthcare Science Practitioners (HCSP) and Healthcare Scientists (HCS). The consultation document described a separate training and career pathway for each group and their own form of regulation. Thus, while the opportunity to move between groups was envisaged, the format of the training and career pathway within each group was seen to be common across all the different scientific disciplines within healthcare science. At present, Healthcare Scientists represent nearly 50 scientific disciplines across three primary streams: life science, physiological science and physical sciences.
During the consultation period, the Scottish Forum for Healthcare Science (SFHCS) held a meeting for stakeholders in Stirling on 28 January at which it elicited feedback for the 3 main strands of healthcare science. Professional bodies, including the Institute of Biomedical Scientist (IBMS) and the Association of Clinical Scientists, have all contacted members and urged them to reply to the consultation as individuals as well as a collective response.
It was recognised that the format of the on-line consultation document did not allow a number of issues to be addressed, particularly where there was significant concern about the general principles behind MSC or where there were issues peculiar to the model of health delivery in Scotland.
One of the drivers for MSC was the assumption that current education and training pathways were fragmented and inflexible with funding models varying across the UK. There were already schemes in place for the delivery of high quality training for Clinical Scientists and the Integrated Biomedical Science Degree with ongoing laboratory training for Specialist, Higher Specialist and Consultant Practitioner Diplomas after students qualify.
Smaller groups within Healthcare Scientists were unregulated at present but the Health Professionals Council (HPC) was working with the aspirant groups to formulate a way to have them on the HPC register.
The consultation ends on 6 March 2009. Concern had been raised by the lack of University involvement and that there were no details about who would deliver the training.
Concern had been raised that training would be provided in the “Central Belt” to the detriment of NE Scotland and beyond.
A response to the consultation document was expected in July/ August.
9.6 / AMC
9.6.1 / GP Sub-Committee
More discussions had been held around membership. Have now decided to start election process and writing to CHPs asking for their help.
Consultation document has been issued - SGPC – the Way Ahead. This is an inclusive document looking at all aspect of joint practices (including health, premises, workforce, IM & T and out of hours) to see how we go forward.
9.6.2 / Consultants’ Sub-Committee
Issues from last meeting -
Emergency Care Centre – already covered.
Medical Records – some of the things that we had been told are not happening, anaesthetic records are not kept. Dr Casson had written asking for a moratorium until this can be properly discussed.
Mrs Jennie Tait commented that the Royal College of Pathologists have just issued their 2009 regulations which states that records should be retained for 30 years.
10. / Reports
Protected meal times – Fiona McKenzie had fed back to the hospital the problems that had been encountered. Thanks should be passed on to Ms McKenzie for dealing with this.
OMT – Lack of resources for NHSG in the next few years, which will hit the public sector. We are now in a reduced growth situation which could be a no growth situation in the future. There is a £20 million shortfall in the budget for NHSG.
AIG – £30 million shortfall in capital available for the projects that are in the planning, these projects will have to be re-phased. There are major expenditure issues. Current projects include Emergency Care Centre, Health Village, some GP practices etc.
11. / ACF Letter to the Board
The Chair had spoken to Ewan Robertson regarding the lack of feedback from the Board to ACF letters. Mr Robertson said that it had been agreed some time ago that no feedback would be required unless asking for a specific decision. However the Board do value the letters that are sent.
Issues for the next letter to the Board –
Partnership working – it was commented that cuts and changes are being made which would appear to be without consideration of the aligned strategies which are about keeping people out of hospital, working to 18 week target etc.
OMT – cuts in finance – effect on workforce, waiting targets etc.
12. / Other Reports
12.1 / eHealth Committee
Discussion around records, hospital going wireless, PMS and theatre system, DATIX and lack of awareness of error reporting system.
12.2 / Child Protection
Moray report published on 12th February highlighted areas where improvements were required. Health planning and multi agency discussions taking place to take a look at the actions that needed to address the shortfalls.
12.3 / Others
Nil.
13. / Minutes
The Forum noted the following minutes:
13.1 / OMT
ACF Constituent Committees
13.2 / Area Medical Committee – 6 October 2008
13.3 / Area Pharmaceutical Committee – No Minute
13.4 / Area Optometric Committee – 3 September 2008
13.5 / Allied Health Professionals Committee – No Minute
13.6 / GANMAC – No Minute
13.7 / Area Healthcare Science Forum – No Minute
13.8 / GP Sub Committee – 15 December 2008
13.9 / Consultants’ Sub Committee – 13 November 2008
14. / Items for Noting
Nil.
15. / AOCB
16. / Date of next meeting
Wednesday 22 April 2009 at 6.00pm.
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