Agenda item

Ceri Jacob, Managing Director of Barking, Havering and Redbridge Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) gave a presentation on ‘The BHR Health and Care System – Setting the Context’.

The Committee were advised that, as previously reported, there was a significant system deficit.  In order to address this deficit, two temporary groups had been set up to respond to the specific needs of NHS Financial Recovery in BHR:

NHS Recovery Board (NRB) – Which consisted of the senior leaders (clinical and managerial) within the NHS System and focused on both preparing for the System Oversight Group as well as resolving any issues affecting the progress of financial recovery. It was also responsible for directing and overseeing development of a 3 Year System Recovery Plan for NHS Partners in BHR, utilising the work of the Transformation Boards and aligned to the overall 3 Year Recovery Plan for the wider Integrated Care System.

Joint NHS Programme Management Office (PMO) – This group would support the NHS Recovery Board and be the vehicle through which NHS Partners would work together to deliver the following:

1. Ensure the alignment of QIPP/QCIP Schemes and ensure they were mutually compatible.
2. Monitor and report on progress of the delivery of each partners efficiency programmes.
3. Work to unblock issues affecting progress.
4. Support the collation of data and information to the NHS Recovery Board and for the NHS System Oversight Group.

The Managing Director also explained how the new governance structure would assist in the financial recovery and described the key areas of focus for transformation.

Kathryn Halford OBE, Chief Nurse, then gave a presentation to the Health Scrutiny Committee on ‘Medical and Finance Issues: Patient Safety’.

The Committee were advised that:

•  The Trust were on track to deliver revised 2018/19 forecast of just under £65m deficit;

•  The financial position was starting to improve;

•  Independent reports by Grant Thornton and Deloitte found no evidence of harm to patients as a consequence of financial issues;

•  There were no concerns regarding patient safety related to ongoing financial challenges;

•  A submission of the refreshed financial recovery plan had been sent to NHS Improvement; and

•  There was alignment with system-wide recovery plan.

Work was also being undertaken to address issues of allegations relating to bullying and engagement of medical staff, and issues amongst a pocket of consultants where there were allegations of covering up poor practice.

The Cabinet Member for Social Care & Health Integration addressed the Committee advising that, as the Chair of the BHR Integrated Care Partnership (ICP) Board, the Board had held a special session on 31 October 2018, in which members of the Board reviewed the current position on governance, transformation priorities, and future developments of the ICPB work plan.

The Cabinet Member advised that at the conclusion of the workshop, the Chair of the ICP Board issued a challenge to senior leaders to develop a clear way forward for the Integrated Care Partnership, craft a more coherent narrative about the benefits to be delivered, and to identify three big tangible changes that would be delivered in the year ahead.  The work was underway for consideration at the January 2019 meeting of the ICP Board and would be presented to the Health Scrutiny Committee in due course.

In response to questions, the Committee were advised that:

- Following the appointment of a new acting Chief Executive, staff appeared to be approaching managers more often with small issues;

- A new electronic system had been put in place to enable staff to raise issues anonymously;

- There was no evidence that patients had received a lower quality of service; and

- The Trust was the only trust in London to meet the 62-day target for cancer care.

The presentations were noted.