Agenda item

10:40

This paper aims to provide the Oxfordshire Joint Health and Overview Scrutiny Committee with an update on:

1.    Integrated Care System

2.    Access to primary care

The Committee had before it a report updating on the development of BOB-ICS (Bucks, Oxon, Berkshire West - Integrated Care System) and primary care.

Joan Stewart, Oxfordshire Keep Our NHS Public, was unable to be heard by the Committee due to technical difficulties so her statement was read out.  She stated that the Committee needed to ask crucial questions about how BOB-ICS will fix the problems funding and staffing health and social care.

Joan Stewart urged the Committee to require the CCG to produce comprehensive and detailed reports on all developments, plans and ‘shadow’ structures and arrangements across the BOB ICS and to produce an engagement and communication strategy that will detail how patients, carers and the public will be meaningfully engaged and involved in the setting up and development of BOB ICS structures and processes.

The Chair noted that the report did not include a governance chart, framework or describe the relationship with this Committee.  She asked if there was anything in writing that the Committee should see such as a memorandum of understanding or shared outcomes or values.

Diane Hedges, Deputy Chief Executive, OCCG, responded that they were required to move in line with national legislation as it developed.  National guidance was arriving in significant volumes which was being prescriptive about elements, and we needed to follow this.  In the meantime, the CCGs continued to meet and make decisions in public.  There was an early draft constitution which it should be possible to share within a few weeks.

Yvonne Rees, Chief Executive, Oxfordshire County Council, added that they were at the beginning of the process and a structure chart was being worked on.  She proposed to hold a briefing for Members of the Committee before Christmas. 

Members raised further questions which Diane Hedges and Yvonne Rees responded to as follows:

·         The needs of residents will always take primacy.  While there will be a need to move quickly, the process will take a year to 18 months.  There were opportunities in this to do things better for residents and the Committee will be involved every step of the way.

·         Oxfordshire had made great progress in the last couple of years in the ability of all the partners to work together.  The ICS will want to delegate to the place where it will have most impact.  There were many meetings taking place planning services, improving service delivery and sharing waiting lists within Oxfordshire and across the ICS.  The good progress will be incorporated and built upon.

·         The current discussions across the ICS were about learning from each other, agreeing common metrics, sharing information and collaborating rather than competing.

·         The OCCG has been responding to the problems with some services still closed to referrals by commissioning services from neighbouring counties or the independent sector as well as working with Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) to get those services reopened.

·         The closure of maternity services in two locations was being reviewed regularly by OUH.  There were problems nationally with infection control and staff having to isolate.

Members also criticised an OCCG online survey about online consultations.  There had been no questions on age, gender or IT capability that would enable analysis on health inequalities.  Also, it was not possible to specify if a particular GP service was not providing any of the online services.  Diane Hedges agreed to take those points back.

Actions:

·         Yvonne Rees to arrange a briefing for Members on BOB-ICS before Christmas if possible.

·         Training on BOB-ICS to be organised for January.

·         The Committee to have a dialogue with OCCG on the contents of the report to the next Committee meeting in February.