Agenda item

To receive a presentation from Hampshire CCG Partnership and West Hampshire CCG providing an overview of the NHS in the County.

A presentation was heard from the Chief Executive of Hampshire CCG Partnership and Chief Officer of West Hampshire CCG, which provided an overview for Members of the NHS commissioning landscape in Hampshire, as well as the key challenges facing the NHS which were likely to feature on the Committee’s work programme over the next four year period (see presentation, Item 8 in the Minute Book).

Members noted that previously there were five CCGs in Hampshire, but from April 2017 four of these had formed the Hampshire CCG Partnership (Fareham and Gosport, North Hampshire, North East Hampshire and Farnham, and South East Hampshire CCG), with West Hampshire CCG unaffected by these changes.  This furthered the CCG’s continued approach to working in partnership, and enabled more efficient working with partners such as local authorities.  Those CCGs forming the Partnership would continue to work as local geographies and would maintain their own Board arrangements, but on wider issues would work collaboratively as one CCG.  Between all CCGs in Hampshire, the approximate spend was £1.8bn, with all NHS services (except highly specialised acute services) commissioned by CCGs on behalf of the population of the County.

An overview was provided of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP), which was an ambitious plan to reform services across the two Counties, Portsmouth and Southampton (overlapping with the Frimley STP in the North East of the County), and to meet the challenges facing those contributing to the health of the population.  A number of significant issues faced the NHS locally, and those specifically relating to urgent and emergency care, the future of primary care, and staffing sustainability were discussed in detail. 

The four health systems in Hampshire were outlined to the Committee: Frimley, North and Mid Hampshire, Portsmouth and South East Hampshire, and Southampton and South West Hampshire.  The work ongoing in each of these areas, including the specific issues faced by each system, were highlighted.  A number of these issues, and the challenges outlined for the future, already featured on the HASC’s work programme, and the CCGs looked forward to a challenging and supportive working relationship with the Committee going forward.

In response to questions, Members heard:

·         That the proposals on the future of services in North and Mid Hampshire were likely to be ready for scrutiny by the Committee in September, once the detail of out-of-hospital services had been configured.

·         That the main driver for the CCGs working together as a Partnership was to meet the challenges faced by the NHS as a larger being, bringing together talented individuals across organisations to work collaboratively.  The financial picture was different for each CCG – some ended the last financial year with a surplus, others a deficit – so money was not the main driver for the change.

·         The challenge of accessing GPs was a problem in some localities, and there was a wider issue of how primary care should be delivered in future.  Firstly, primary care needed to be more accessible and delivered when needed to stop individuals accessing care from other routes which may be inappropriate (i.e. attending at urgent care facilities), and secondly, the types of role practised in primary care needed to adapt to suit need (as not all patients requesting to see a GP need to).

·         One of the key STP work streams was ‘New Models of Care’, and this in part focused on how primary care could be organised differently, such as through integrated out-of-hospital hubs.  This would be a huge programme of change, and would require innovation and new ways of thinking to implement across Hampshire.  It would also need a programme of engagement to help the public to understand where to go, and to have confidence in accessing it.

·         Some of the innovations already being practised across Hampshire include a programme in Yateley where paramedics are employed as part of primary care services to carry out home visits and see patients in need of care who aren’t able to get to the GP.

·         The CCGs were cognisant of housebuilding programmes in Hampshire and the need to develop health infrastructure to support these new communities.  New developments of the size of the proposed new town of Wellborne would also enable innovation to be applied, such as the development of integrated care.

The Chairman thanked the Chief Executive and Chief Officer for their attendance and contribution towards the induction of the new Committee, and for an informative and thought-provoking presentation.  Members agreed that a future briefing on the future of primary care in Hampshire would be helpful to the Committee, and agreed to request this from the CCGs.

Councillor Briggs left the meeting.