Agenda item

Cllr Hanna will provide a verbal update on relevant issues since the last meeting.

There are two documents attached to this item:

1.     A report containing recommendations from the Committee on Palliative Care Provision in Oxfordshire.

2.     A brief statement from the BOB Integrated Care Board Director of Urgent and Emergency Care for Oxfordshire, which outlines the redesignation of the Urgent care centres on the Horton General Hospital and John Radcliffe hospital sites.

The Committee is recommended to NOTE the Chair’s update having raised any relevant questions.

In addition, no details of the outcomes of discussions between the Council and BOB ICB in regards to the latter’s restructure since the last HOSC meeting have been submitted. Stephen Chandler will be invited to update the Committee on the current situation.

The Committee Chair outlined the following points to update the Committee on

developments since the previous meeting:

1.           A HOSC report containing recommendations from the Committee on Palliative/End of Life Care, which was discussed during the 06 June 2024 HOSC meeting, had been published in the agenda papers for this meeting.

2.           A brief statement from the BOB Integrated Care Board Director of Urgent and Emergency Care for Oxfordshire, which outlined the redesignation of the Urgent care centres on the Horton General Hospital and John Radcliffe hospital sites, was included in the agenda. Lily O’Connor, Programme Director Urgent and Emergency Care for Oxfordshire, BOB ICB, explained that this redesignation was primarily for governance and reporting purposes and did not affect the centres’ operations or names.

3.           The HOSC’s Oxford Community Health Hubs Working Group met with senior representatives of Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust as well as the OCC Cabinet Member for transport to discuss the avenues of transportation and access to the newly developing health hubs for both patients and staff.

4.           Maternity Update: HOSC had been involved in close and ongoing scrutiny of maternity services. Members would have seen the dossier produced by Keep the Horton General, and the Committee had received a briefing from OUH in July on the state of maternity services and highlighted the issues emerging from the dossier, urging the Trust to have a clear plan and to take adequate measures to address the issues with maternity services. A public meeting on maternity services was scheduled for the next HOSC meeting in November.

5.           Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board (BOB ICB) Proposed Restructuring: The Chair addressed the proposals for restructuring within the ICB, which was the focus of the HOSC meeting in August. The Committee had expressed concerns about the impact of these proposals on partnership working with local authorities, the NHS, and the voluntary sector. The Chair noted that positive negotiations had been ongoing, but the ICB had not provided a written statement to reassure the Committee.

Stephen Chandler, the Director for People and Transformation, provided further details on the negotiations with the ICB. He mentioned that while there had been positive discussions, no written confirmation of this progress had been received. The Director expressed concerns about the ICB’s operating model and the potential impact on local services. He also highlighted the importance of prevention and early intervention, which could be undermined by the proposed changes. The ICB had chosen not to give an update on the state of the proposed changes until after their Board Meeting at the end of September, which would be held in private.

The Committee NOTED the Chair’s Update.

The Committee AGREED the following recommendations:

1.           For the Committee to DELEGATE to the Health Scrutiny Officer, in consultation with the Chair and Director for People and Transformation, to request a call-in (on behalf of the County Council) from the Secretary of State for Health & Social Care in relation to the BOB ICB proposed operating model.

2.           For the Committee to DELEGATE to the Health Scrutiny Officer and Chair to communicate to the Chair and CEO of the ICB the decision of HOSC, and to write to all Oxfordshire MPs to offer a briefing and to seek their support for a call-in.