Agenda item

Verbal update

David Evans provided the following Update to the Committee Members (the slides attached as Appendix 1 refer);

Questions from the floor followed.

Cllr Taylor asked if David knew where the meeting was going to be held? David said that he did not know at this time and it was agreed that the details of the venue would be forwarded to Sharon Burr when available.

Cllr Birnie felt that there appeared to be a disparity on the slide regarding the four partners, talking about Luton and Dunstable and then on the next one talking about Herts and Essex. David replied that he thinks that is t on the diabetes pathway – and the reason that the hospital is on there is because even if you live in Hertfordshire you would possibly use that hospital.

Cllr Guest requested at this point that questions were saved until the end of the presentation, unless there is something that needs to be clarified now.

Cllr England enquired whether the campaign included Dacorum Digest as that may be a good thing to pick up.  David replied that he didn’t know the specific places they would be promoting it, but said that if the Councillor felt that it has a good reach then they may use it as anywhere we can connect closer to our communities is good.  There will also be a local campaign on the back of the national one.

Cllr Birnie asked where the figure of 65% for GP access came from?  David explained that this related to extending bookable appointments to 7 days a week which increases the normal finish at 18.30 through until 20.00 so you have a service that is ‘8 til 8’ at 7 days a week, and the target is for 100 percent of our patch to be covered offering that service by November.

Cllr Birnie asked about muscular skeletal services and would that treatment take place within GP surgeries? David confirmed that the treatment can take place in a variety of settings, some of it will be in practises where there has been space allocated, some will be in places that have been rented, some will be on the phone, some will be through video conferencing as well, depending on the type of physiotherapy or intervention it will depend on where they go or how they are seen, tailoring the response to the individual.

Cllr Birnie questioned the figure of 85% percent for A&E with a target of 95%, and David explained that this was for the percentage of people being seen within four hours. 

Cllr England asked for more information regarding Connect Health and David told him that   Connect Health are a private organisation that have been running for around 8 years with contracts in north London and other areas around London.  Feedback is positive.  Cllr England asked who was doing that before and was told that it was West Herts Hospital Trust.

Cllr Hicks said that David used a phrase which really annoyed him when talking previously about Gossoms End shutting and comparing life expectancy in Berkhamsted and a deprived area in Hemel Hempstead and Berkhamsted when in Tring central there is an area which is a GLC overspill estate and has exactly the same social economic group living there as does Bennetts End and they will have the same problems. The Cllr felt that by always comparing like that the people in Tring central would be forgotten.  David said that he thought the Cllr had misunderstood – there is massive depravation in St Albans, it is a wealthy area but has one of the most deprived patches within it. He has had to use an examples so he is always going to miss someone. He confirmed that they look at the population and then at what we can be delivered at local level.

Cllr Hicks confirmed that he understood the point.

Cllr England said he was a little confused about the four delivery boards, and which patches. David replied that they are locality based, so they will be Hemel Hempstead, Watford, St Albans and Hertsmere. Then they look at place based so that although there are four of them they then look at individual places within their localities.  So they will make plans on that basis.

Cllr Guest asked David to explain the structural deficit to the committee.

David said that the structural deficit is the money that is making a loss on either buildings, the efficiency of the buildings, on IT  - so for example West Herts Hospital Trust has around 80 – 100 million structural deficit which it needs to incorporate into its plans and how then it manages and maintains its building so it is then able to deliver the care that it needs to do, so every year it needs to ensure that it has enough money to be able to manage that which is one of the biggest challenges within the current STP footprint.