Agenda item

Report and presentation by Rosemary Grainger, Project Director – County Durham and Tees Valley Acute Services Quality Legacy Project – NHS County Durham.

The Committee considered a report of, and received a presentation from, Rosemary Grainger, Project Director of County Durham and Tees Valley Acute Services Quality Legacy Project which provided details of the Project (for copy of report and slides see file of Minutes).

The objective of the Quality Legacy Project was to reach consensus on the quality standards in acute services it was wanted to achieve, using levels of national best practice.  The Project would identify opportunities for meeting these standards and assess the financial environment and workforce constraints in which such improvements may take place.  The Project would support and enhance the commissioning of acute hospital services as Primary Care Trusts transferred their commissioning responsibilities to Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCG’s) over the next year.

Councillor Stradling thanked the Project Director for the presentation.  He expressed concerns that cost and requirements had been discussed and asked what would happen if the Project stated that a level of provision was needed which could not be afforded.  The Project Director replied that this would be for partners to discuss and perhaps work together to change working practices to attempt to reach the needed level of provision.

Councillor Temple asked what the role of the Committee was in the work being carried out by the Project, as decisions made by the Project could have a great impact on the work of the Committee.  The Project Director replied that the Project was not a decision making executive body, but would make recommendations to CCG’s, so that when CCG’s started to commission services, they were fully aware of the implications.  A key role for the Committee would be to work with CCG’s when they decided how to commission to the standards set out by the Project.

Councillor Crute asked about the impact that this Project would have on CCG’s.  The Project Director replied that the Project would provide checks and balances for CCG’s and would require CCG’s to work together.  One of the key roles of CCG’s was to continue to improve standards and outcomes, and this Project was aimed at helping them to do this.

Resolved:

That the report and presentation be noted, and the Committee continue to receive updates as the Project develops.