Issue - meetings

18.1.    The Board considered a report providing an update on the progress with system integration and related areas of collaboration.

18.2.    The Board asked whether the Whole System Barometer Indicators could include a Red, Amber, Green (RAG) colour scheme to aid readability.

18.3.    Mark Stainton, Director of Adult Social Care and Health, agreed to add a RAG rating to the dashboard of indicators in future.

18.4.    The Board asked why these specific indicators were chosen, i.e., why there was not an indicator around hospital discharge included, and why the performance against the secondary care indicators were a lot lower than the target.

18.5.    Mark Stainton said the purpose of the barometer indicators was to provide a snapshot feel for how the system is performing. All parts of the health and social care system are hugely challenged by staff recruitment and retention, increased demand, and the availability of home care and care home packages. The secondary care indicators are therefore representative of a whole system that is under pressures. This is because these pressures impact on the ability of the NHS to meet elective targets and the 4-hour A&E wait times. Performance indicators around discharge, of which there are a few, would appear on the next level down on the scale of detail. Jessica Britton, Executive Managing Director, East at NHS Sussex, added the national targets for secondary care were significantly impacted by COVID-19 and there are recovery targets against each of the national standards. East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust (ESHT) performs very well in relation to these parameters, albeit recognising that further work is needed to improve. Richard Milner, Chief of Staff at ESHT, further added this document is reporting the current health and care system’s condition, rather than being a performance management document. There are a number of other forums where primary, secondary, community, and mental health care providers are held to account for their performance.

18.6.    The Board asked whether the recruitment to positions and governance arrangements for NHS Sussex’s East Sussex ‘place’ are complete and whether the two NHS Sussex vacancies on the HWB would be filled.

18.7.    Jessica Britton said that it is anticipated that there will be greater clarity soon about the arrangements for the East Sussex Health and Care Partnership, including appointment to the two vacancies on the HWB. Jessica Britton offered to share with the Board a list of NHS Sussex roles that are focussed on East Sussex.

18.8.    The Board RESOLVED to note the contents of the update, including:

1)         the further proposed updates to the Health and Wellbeing Board (HWB) membership, and;

2)         the draft Sussex Integrated Care Strategy will be brought to the December meeting of the Board for endorsement.