Agenda item

In attendance for this item: Rachel Jones (Executive Director Strategy, Planning and Partnerships, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust)

1.    The Chair welcomed the guests and asked Ms. Jones for any updates since the publication of the report as well as an update on the implementation of the Hyper Acute Stroke Unit (HASU) in Tunbridge Wells. Key highlights were:

a.     Two Urgent Treatment Centres had opened.

b.     A&E performance ranked 4^th or 5^th in the UK, though there was still room for improvement.

c.      The Trust  had established the beginnings of a Digestive Diseases Unit, one of the services being repatriated from London.

d.     Capital investment for cardiology improvements was proving hard to secure and impacting progress but the Trust continued to try and move it forward.

e.     Phase 1 of HASU implementation was complete. A full business case for phase 2 would be presented to the ICB Board in June 2023. The rehabilitation pathway required additional work. 

f.       The improvements to Women’s Services had been challenging, in part due to high vacancy rates.

g.     The Trust had recruited 3 new Oncologists for Cancer Services. The Trust was working closely with East Kent Hospitals on the reprovision of radiotherapy – this would be a substantial business base and require significant capital investment.

h.     The Trust was investigating acquiring a surgical robot in the area of Urology, along with recruiting surgeons with robotic experience. The use of robotics across departments would likely be commonplace in the future.

i.       Separate to the clinical strategy, ophthalmology services were experiencing long waits. The Trust was working to develop community services in some parts to ensure equal provision across Northwest Kent and Medway.

j.       An addition to the clinical strategy had been the opportunity to develop a Kent and Medway Orthopaedic Service to help support the long term reduction in waiting lists and manage long term demand. The service would be delivered alongside acute trust partners, and they had been successful in international recruitment. Subject to approval, the intention was to open the unit in March 2024.

2.    A Member noted the continued pressure on A&E services and questioned how the patient pathway as well as the whole system could be improved to reduce such pressure. Ms. Jones felt lots of small changes could be put in place rather than one transformational change, such as:

a.    Ensuring members of the public understood what support was available and where, whilst ensuring that provision was robust.

b.    Pharmacists being able to prescribe some medication.

c.    Streamlining patient pathways.

d.    Managing the flow of patients into and out of hospitals.

3.    Asked about repatriating services from London to Kent, Ms Jones explained there was a need to have a clear understanding of which services could, and could not, be provided from London. Some very specialist care would still need to be provided from London but where possible providers across Kent and Medway were looking for opportunities to bring care closer to residents. She offered to return with a paper on repatriating bariatric care.

4.    In relation to stroke, a Member asked whether the SSNAP data was yet available. Ms. Jones offered to provide an update to the Committee outside of the meeting. HASU implementation was on the work programme for July and the clerk would request the presenters include the latest SSNAP data.

5.    In response to a question, Ms Jones confirmed that social media was used within Children’s Services to reach out to young people about their mental health, but that partner organisations with expertise were also used for engagement.

6.    The Chair requested a site visit once the Elective Unit was completed along with phase 2 of the HASU. Ms. Jones would explore options with the clerk.

7.    RESOLVED that:

i)         the committee note the update, and

ii)        invite the Trust back at an appropriate time.