Agenda and minutes

RESOLVED that the Minutes of the meeting held on 13 February 2013 are correctly recorded and that they be signed by the Chairman.

Felicity Cox (Chief Executive, NHS Kent and Medway), Dr Rosarii Harte (Assistant Medical Director – Acute Services, Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust), Dr James Osborne (Consultant, Medway NHS Foundation Trust), Lauretta Kavanagh (Director of Commissioning for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, NHS Kent and Medway), Dr Mick Cantor (Swale CCG), Sarah Holmes Smith (Assistant Director, Community Recovery Services), Sara Warner (Assistant Director Citizen Engagement, NHS Kent and Medway), Helen Buckingham (Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Whole Systems Commissioning, NHS Kent and Medway), Dr Peter Green (Chief Clinical Officer, Medway Clinical Commissioning Groups), Dr Elizabeth Lunt (Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley Clinical Commissioning Group), and David Tamsitt (Director Acute Services, Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust) were in attendance for this item.

(a)       The Chairman welcomed Members of the Committee (Joint HOSC), the Committee’s guests and members of the public. Representatives of the NHS were then asked to introduce the item.

(b)       Members received a PowerPoint presentation setting out the broad areas covered by mental health services in order to put the proposed changes to acute mental health inpatient services in their wider context (see Appendix A). Part of this presentation included a link to a service user’s story available on the Live It Well website (http://www.liveitwell.org.uk/live-it-library/jamess-story/). Members were also provided with an additional information sheet (Appendix B). The services outlined went from preventative care to tertiary and related to the most common mental health disorders. It was stated that concerns had been expressed in the past about the ability to access secondary services following referral from primary care. 90% of these referrals were assessed in 4 weeks. Most of these referrals required short term assistance and could be handed back to be cared for by primary care. It was only those with longer term needs who required inpatient services. Members were informed that the implementation of the proposed changes would be phased to ensure the community based crisis teams were established before any changes to inpatient provision. 

(c)        Acute services followed the pathway from crisis and home treatment to acute inpatient care to psychiatric intensive care. The proposed changes under discussion focused on this pathway. It was explained that the service model proposed of 3 centres of excellence was evidence based and there was best practise to learn on, both in the United Kingdom and abroad with New Zealand highlighted in particular. In addition, there were also the requirements of the Care Quality Commission for treatment to ensure people’s dignity as well as the recent Francis Report putting additional emphasis on putting the patient first.

(d)       NHS representatives explained that Medway A-Block was not fit for purpose and the requisite level of care and service could not be delivered there. Members were reminded of the comparatively high level of serious incidents at Medway A-Block compared to Priority House in Maidstone and Littlebrook Hospital in Dartford and were informed that there had been one since the previous meeting, but none at either  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

(a)       It was agreed that the date of the next meeting would be determined at a later date.

(b)       One Member noted that this was to be the last Committee meeting which Helen Buckingham would be attending as she was moving on to a new role. Members of Committee expressed their thanks for her work in the past.