Decision details

The Cabinet will be asked to consider the findings from the response to public consultation and the revised proposals

The Cabinet Member for Health and Adult Services presented a report on the Health for North East London (HealthforNEL) proposals for the reconfiguration of acute and secondary health services in the region which were set out in its document “Clinical recommendations following consultation: What the changes would mean for residents in Barking and Dagenham” dated October 2010.

The Council’s Health and Adult Services Select Committee had considered the proposals on 27 October and had sought assurances from HealthforNEL on a number of issues.  We noted HealthforNEL’s response to the Select Committee but concur that there still remains considerable ambiguity around the future plans.  To this end, the Corporate Director of Adult and Community Services referred to the proposed letter to the Chief Executive Officer of HealthforNEL (Appendix 1 to the report) which states that the Council is unable to fully support the proposals until such time that a written commitment is received from HealthforNEL which addresses in full the Council’s concerns as detailed in the letter.

Issues that arose during the discussions included:

·  The implications of the proposal to downgrade the Accident and Emergency facility at King George’s Hospital to an ‘Urgent Care’ facility, resulting in Queen’s Hospital offering the only A&E service in the region;

·  The progress of the East Dagenham Community Hospital development and the need for robust contingency plans in the event that the project is delayed or abandoned;

·  The importance of the midwifery led Birthing Centre at the Barking Community Hospital site in view of the Borough’s high birthing ratio and the major housing regeneration projects.  In this respect, the Corporate Director agreed to provide a brief to Margaret Hodge MP and Jon Cruddas MP with a view to lobbying Ministers on the urgent need for this facility;

·  The future role of the new Health and Wellbeing Board in overseeing health commissioning plans.

Agreed, in order to assist the Council to achieve the Community Priority “Healthy”, to:-

(i)  Support the proposed response to the Chief Executive Officer of HealthforNEL as set out in Appendix 1 to the report; and

(ii)  Authorise the Corporate Director of Adult and Community Services, in consultation with the Leader and Cabinet Member for Health and Adult Services, to agree the final terms of the letter.

The Corporate Director undertook to provide Cabinet Members with the response from HealthforNEL when it is received and to keep them informed of progress with the major new developments.