Agenda item

This item was moved earlier on the agenda as it was felt it would be useful to receive this update prior to other reports.

David Mehaffey gave a summary of the establishment of the Integrated Care Board (ICB) and the Integrated Care Partnership Assembly (ICPA). He explained that Place based partnerships, operating under each upper tier authority area, were being developed and NHS Trusts were coming together to work as provider collaboratives.

The four strategic aims of the ICS were: Improve population health outcomes; Reduce health inequalities; improve value for money and enable the NHS to make a greater contribution to the economic and social wellbeing of the population.

The new ICP was a joint committee between the ICB and the two local authorities, but it would meet with a larger range of stakeholders and Partners. The ICP would oversee the production of the Integrated Care Strategy for the whole Herefordshire and Worcestershire system. The Integrated Care Strategy needed to be published by December this year and would cover a five-year period with the ability to refresh more frequently.

There was a list of statutory requirements which needed to be considered for the Integrated Care Strategy. It had been agreed that a place based approach would be taken, whether that be through Primary Care Networks or District Collaboratives. The strategy would start from what was being done on the ground. Only when things were identified as not being done in the place-based arrangements would things be done on a system wide basis. The ICS would fill the gaps if actions were not being taken elsewhere in the system and if a clear benefit could be seen in working at a system wide level.

In response to various questions it was clarified that:

·       This strategy would be different to previous strategies and it would make a  difference as the aim was to improve population health outcomes by working better together, integrating services across health and social care, physical and mental health and across primary and secondary care. The legislation now supported the intention to work better together and there would be an end to separate Acute or Social Care strategies. Priorities needed to be agreed and the system had to see how it could support local partners to deliver changes. It was down to the partners to make the strategy different to ones which had gone before. The national policy and available resources needed to be applied in the best way possible for the people of Worcestershire.

·       It was explained that the ICS would have key themes such as cancer, stroke, mental health or wider conditions but it would not drill down to the details. The Health and Wellbeing Strategy would be used as a basis and the ICS would fill in any gaps. The Chairman clarified that the ICS should be based on the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment, reduce inequalities and improve the patient experience.  It was explained that a Joint Forward Plan would be produced which would detail a delivery plan

·       It was queried whether spending would be per head of population across the ICB area. This was considered an issue for further consideration by the ICP. The current levels and areas of funding could be seen as the baseline and going forward collective decisions would have to be made about whether new resources should be targeted at areas of greatest need or continue to do what has typically been done and allocate resources so that everyone gets a fair share. Some funding was directed by the Government as being available for all, but with other pots of money there was a choice about where it was spent, which services or which geographies. One of the aims of the ICB was to reduce health inequalities

·       With regard to whether the strategy would be top down and performance managed by the NHS, the response was that rather than look at performance management, the opportunity should be taken to make a difference at local levels and focus on PCN and district collaboratives, allowing them the opportunity to explain the health needs in their areas.

RESOLVED The Health and Wellbeing Board

a)     noted the progress on the establishment of the Integrated Care System for Herefordshire and Worcestershire; and

b)    agreed that the NHS Joint Forward Plan would be presented at a future meeting of the Board