Agenda item

To receive and consider the attached report of the Head of Scrutiny and Member Development

The Head of Scrutiny and Member Development submitted a report which provide Members with a range of information  in relation to the proposed changes to the National Blood Service (NBS) and the implications for Leeds City Council.  Appended to the report were submissions from NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT), Unite and Leeds Primary Care Trust.

The Chair welcomed the following to the meeting:

• Clive Ronaldson, Director of Patient Services, NHSBT
• Dr Sheila Maclennan, Clinical Director – Products, NHSBT
• Michelle Ashford, Head of Strategy – Processing and Testing – NHSBT
• James Buckley, Head of Strategic Communications, NHSBT

Clive Ronaldson gave a brief presentation on proposed changes at the Leeds Blood Centre.  Main issues highlighted included the following:

• Changes to be made at the Leeds Blood Centre
  • Blood testing to be moved by the end of 2009/10
  • Blood processing to be moved by the middle of 2010/11
  • After 2010, roughly 50 % of processing and testing to be done at Sheffield, the remainder at Manchester and Newcastle.

• Facilities to remain in Leeds

o  Blood Issue Department – to supply local hospitals with blood including the provision of special and short shelf life products

o  The Red Cell Immunohaematology Services

o  Stem cell processing and storage

Members expressed various concerns over the proposals, including the following:

·  That scientific and medical based experience was being lost from Leeds and this would have an economic effect.

·  That this review had being a matter of concern since July 2007 and had only just been presented to the Board.

·  Environmental impact of transporting blood.

In response to concerns, the Board was informed that the NHSBT currently had excess capacity which in turn increased capital expenditure and to maintain all the current sites was too expensive.  These costs were then passed to hospitals in the price of products.  Other costs had also risen due to a fall in donations and rising treatment costs.  In respect of staff, it was reported that a redeployment programme had commenced and everything possible would be done to avoid compulsory redundancies.  Transport costs would remain approximately the same under the new proposals.

The Chair introduced Dr Ian Cameron, Director Public Health and Dr Fiona Day, Specialist Registrar in Public Health to the meeting.

Dr Cameron expressed concern regarding the consultation process involved ion the review of the National Blood Strategy and reported that the PCT had found it difficult to become involved having been informed of the review by Leeds City Council.  Further concern focussed on the possibility of redundancies and the potential loss of skilled staff and how all parties could work together to increase the number of blood donations locally.  Although it was felt that patients would not be compromised by the proposals it was not felt to be in the best interest of emergency incidents.

The Chair introduced Rob Wilson, Leeds Processing Team Manager and Dr Anatole Lubenko, Head of Stem Cell to the meeting.

Rob Wilson addressed the meeting.  He reported that Leeds was one of the top performing blood centres nationally and gave examples of areas where Leeds excelled and explained potential difficulties should these services be located elsewhere.  He also referred to future implications due to increased testing of supplies.

Dr Lubenko raised the following points:

• Leeds Teaching Hospital Trust was one of the biggest providers of Healt Care in the north and biggest users of blood products.
• The affect on emergency calls for cross-matching blood products
• Costs of transport figures – these would be affected by significant rises in fuel costs.
• The site at Sheffield had constraints for expansion.
• Environmental charges that would be levied on NHS Bodies would be picked up by service users.

Mr Wilson and Dr Lubenko also reported on difficulties that had been received in accessing information and requests under the Freedom of Information Act had been made.

RESOLVED – That further information be requested on the Review of the National Blood Strategy and thos to be presented to the Board at a future meeting.