Agenda item

(Report of the Deputy Chief Executive. To be introduced by the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing). The report seeks approval to the establishment of a Health and Care Integration Programme  jointly with the Haringey Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG).

Cabinet considered a report, introduced by the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, which sought approval to establish a Health and Care Integration Programme jointly with the Haringey Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG).

In introducing the report the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, Councillor Morton, noted that that the proposal to establish a joint programme with the CCG built on existing integrated services that had already been developed by the Council and CCG. A good example of this was the Haringey Learning Disabilities Partnership (HLDP), which offered joint provision across health and social care, meaning that users, families and carers were had one single point of contact through which a range of services could be accessed.

Councillor Morton invited Beverley Tarka, Interim Director of Adult Social Services, Haringey Council and Carol Gillen, Director of Operations, Integrated Care and Acute Medicines, Whittington Hospital, to set in more detail the benefits of integrated working and the success that had been achieved via the HLDP.

It was noted having one single point made the patient experience much more straight forward. It was often the case that people with learning disabilities became ‘lost’ within the system due to the range of services that they came into contact with and that the integrated approach adopted by the HLDP made this simpler with one point of contact being established. Other measures such as establishing folders, which set out their ‘story’, were used for patients with learning disabilities at the Whittington Hospital and this helped ensure that information was passed on and taken on board throughout their journey. Cabinet also heard the story of one service user who had been assisted by the integrated approach taken by the HLDP and how as a result of this his medication had been reduced and he had not been arrested following interventions.

RESOLVED:

1. That approval be given to the establishment of a Health and Care Integration Programme  jointly with the CCG;
   
   
2. That it be noted  that an initial funding bid for a programme manager will be made to the transformation reserve fund to start scoping for three months;

3. That it be agreed that the Health and Wellbeing Board would provide strategic oversight of the programme, although key decisions would need to be made through the Council or CCGs decision making structures; and

4. That it be agreed that once the scoping work at iii. has been completed, Cabinet receives a report on the proposed scope of the programme, including risks, any additional resource requirements and other issues.

Alternative options considered

There are a number of individual projects across the Local Authority and CCG focused on the integration of health and social care. Consideration has been given to maintaining these as individual projects but this is likely to reduce their overall impact. In addition, legislative and policy requirements mean that taking no action on integration is not an option.

Reasons for Decision

Improving health outcomes through the principles of prevention, early intervention and community resilience is the strategic direction of the council. This programme provides the mechanism to achieve these aims by improving outcomes for residents. In order to meet savings targets across the Council, Adult Social Care needs to be reviewed. The best option for this is to redesign services and work in partnership. A decision is required to scope out a programme to join up projects working on integration in order to establish a corporate programme alongside existing corporate programmes, ensuring consistency, alignment and efficiency.