North West Informatics Skills Development Network
ISD Strategic Group
Minutes of the meeting held on Friday 11th September 2015
Best Western Leyland Hotel, Leyland, Preston PR25 4JX
Present:
Jonathan Wood, Director of Finance, East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust - Chair
Christine Banks, Informatics Skills Development Manager, NW Skills Development Network
Mark Blakeman, Chair NW ASSIST, Director of Informatics, Wirral University Teaching Hospitals NHS
Debbie Costain, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Lancaster
Rachel Dunscombe, Chief Information Officer, Royal Bolton Hospital NHS FT
Julie Davison, Apprenticeship Lead, NW Skills Development Network
John Glover, Director of IM&T, Countess of Chester NHS FT
Declan Hadley, Digital Lead, Healthier Lancashire Team, NHS England (dialled in)
Jim Hughes, Director of Performance & Informatics, Mersey Care NHS Trust
Dr Georgina Moulton, Education Lead, HeRC, Centre of Health Informatics, University of Manchester (dialled in)
John Llewellyn, Senior Programme Manager, Informatics Merseyside
Alison Singleton, NW Skills Development Network Lead, NW Skills Development Network
Apologies:
Emma Birchall, Associate Director of IM&T, East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust
Jason Dacosta, Director of Information & IT, Warrington & Halton Hospitals NHS FT
Mark Hutchinson, Associate Director of IM&T, Salford Royal NHS FT
Di Ormandy, Head of NW Skills Development Network
David Stewart, Director North West Health Care Libraries
Gareth Thomas, CCIO, Salford Royal NHS FT
Christine Walters, Director of IM&T, Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
1. Welcome & Introductions/Apologies
JW welcomed everyone. Apologies noted as above.
JW introducedDr Debbie Costain from the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Lancaster University.
The relationship with ISD / University of Lancaster will be in three ways:
- We are hoping to accredit some of our existing programmes via APL (= accredited prior learning) and work with the university in developing others.
- Introduce a new workforce to our informatics teams via under and postgraduate placements. AS explained that whilst we work with Manchester University to develop our existing workforce, we are working with Lancaster to develop a new workforce.
- We are hoping to place some data science master students on a final 10 week placement. As part of their studies these students will have a background in Computer studies, Mathematics or Statistics and organisations will have to have a particular project in mind for students to work on.
2. Minutes of the last meeting and actions arising
Minutes of Board meeting held on 23rd June 2015were agreed and approved.
3. Action Log
Please see Action log (separate document)
4.Federation for Informatics Professionals (Fed-IP)
AS and JH are due to meet Gwyn Thomas to see how we can work in
Partnership with Fed-IP. The idea is that ISD would be an associated organisation to
Fed-IP like BCS and IHRIM. Not sure at this stage about all practicalities and
Governancearrangements. Further details will follow shortly.
5.Apprenticeships
JD updated the group on the new two year, combined Level 2/Level 3 Informatics Apprenticeship for 16-18 year olds.
27 organisations are engaged and currently 16 apprentices are assigned to organisations. These apprentices are due to start on 5th October.
There will be a 2nd intake in early November when further apprentices have been recruited.
JD reported that there had been several recruitment issues, i.e. no funding being available, organisationsalready involved with other schemes and lack of early engagement with HR. The whole process has been very time consuming. Processes at the national apprenticeship service are very complex. Also some of the candidates didn’t achieve the GCSE results they expected, so may return to college if our apprentice placement is not offered in time.
It is very difficult for 16-year olds to decide whether they want to work in IT or Information. The group agreed that roles should be kept generic rather than specialising in one area from the beginning.
JW thanked JD on behalf of the group for her hard work and determination to get the Informatics apprenticeship scheme going.
ACTION: JD to produce video clips, i.e. a day in the life of an Information Analyst / IT technician. Approach conference sponsors for funding.
6.CONNECT
The conference is now fully booked. In the coffee area of the conference venuewill be an ISD stand which displays all work programmes we support. The strategy group members are requested to staff this stand. Manchester and Lancaster University and Trainingbytesize, our learning portal provider, will also be behind the stall demonstrating our partnership working. ISD team and steering group members will wear red lanyards to be easilyidentifiable to assist delegates at the conference.
JW thanked everybody for their hard work to develop the very interesting programme for CONNECT.
7.Workforce Profile Update
AS reported that the 2015 Workforce Profile has now been completed. The information about board level / voting directors was incorrect, probably due to lack of knowledge by the ISD lead. There is still a very low level registration of people at professional bodies.
ACTION: AS to remove director’s information from slide presentation for Connect.
8.Accreditation
JH reported that the Accreditation steering group met last week and announced that four organisations have been awarded accreditation at foundation level.
- Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Informatics Merseyside
- Mersey Care NHS Trust
- University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust.
The request of the Finance Skills Development Strategy Group to change the name of the scheme from Excellence in Informatics to Towards Excellence in line with FSD and PSD accreditation scheme was debated. Strategy group members feltthat they wanted to keep the existing name.
JH announced that a working party would be looking to develop intermediate standards early next year.
Organisation working towards accreditation now are: Countess of Chester / Salford Royal and Liverpool CCG.
ACTION: JH to present Accreditation awards at Connect. Assessment visit for Countess of Chester and Salford Royal to be arranged by CB. Intermediate standards to be developed by March 2016.
9.Membership & Chair
JW opened a discussion with the group as to whether there was anyone to replace him as the chair, i.e. another Director of Finance, somebody different i.e. NHS England or a Director of Informatics. The group felt that it was time to have a chair who is a Director of Informatics.
ACTION: AS to write to all members and ask for volunteers / nominations. JW as the chair to select chair.
10.AOB
None
Date of Next Meetings:
Thursday, 12th November 2.00-4.00 Leyland Best Western Hotel, Leyland Way,
Preston PR25 4JX – will follow the Informatics Directors/CCIOs Network
Thursday,28th January 10.00-12noon Seminar Room,
Education Centre, Halton Hospital, Hospital Way, Runcorn WA7 2DA
Wednesday, 16thMarch 2.00-4.00 Leyland Best Western Hotel, Leyland Way,
Preston PR25 4JX – will follow the Informatics Directors/CCIOs Network
Wednesday,11th May 10.00-12noon Seminar Room,
Education Centre, Halton Hospital, Hospital Way, Runcorn WA7 2DA
Thursday, 9thJune 2.00-4.00 Leyland Best Western Hotel, Leyland Way,
Preston PR25 4JX – will follow the Informatics Directors/CCIOs Network
Thursday,8th September 10.00-12noon Seminar Room,
Education Centre, Halton Hospital, Hospital Way, Runcorn WA7 2DA
Tuesday, 15thNovember 2.00-4.00 Leyland Best Western Hotel, Leyland Way,
Preston PR25 4JX – will follow the Informatics Directors/CCIOs Network
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