Agenda item

To receive a report from the Head of Democratic Services which presents a briefing paper by the Leeds Health and Care Partnership on progress with the HomeFirst Programme.

The Head of Democratic Services submitted a report which presented a briefing paper by the Leeds Health and Care Partnership on progress with the HomeFirst Programme.

The following were in attendance:

·  Councillor Fiona Venner, Executive Member for Children’s Social Care and Health Partnerships

·  Councillor Salma Arif, Executive Member for Adults Social Care, Public Health and Active Lifestyles

·  Caroline Baria, Interim Director of Adults and Health

·  Victoria Eaton, Director of Public Health

·  Sam Prince, Interim Chief Executive, Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust

·  Kelly Cohen, Clinical Director, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

·  Helen Lewis, Director of Pathway Integration, Leeds Health and Care Partnership

·  Jenny Cooke, Director of Population Health Planning, Leeds Health and Care Partnership

·  Megan Rowlands, Programme Director for Home First, Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust

The Chair invited the Executive Member for Adults Social Care, Public Health and Active Lifestyles to provide some introductory comments and then invited the Director of Population Health Planning and the Programme Director for Home First to give a brief overview of the key points set out within the appended briefing paper, which was presented in the form of a PowerPoint presentation.

In summary, the following key points were highlighted:

·  Programme aims – the Board received an overview the key aims and outcomes that are linked to the Home First programme.

·  Ward-based pilots to improve transfers of care – the Board was briefed on the current success of two live ward-based pilots in Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust (wards J32 and J16) that are focussed on minimising discharge delays.

·  Active recovery at home – the Board was advised that the first Active Recovery pilot team is now live, with Neighbourhood Teams therapists and SkILs reablement staff coming together to form the pilot team.  It was reported that since the launch of the new ways of working, reablement starts have consistently been above the baseline of 4 per week.

The following areas were also discussed during the Board’s consideration of the briefing paper:

·  Monitoring of the programme – the Board was advised of the role of the Programme Director, Programme Team and Programme Board in terms of overall governance.

·  Active recovery at home – the Board acknowledged that while the first Active Recovery pilot team has only been live for a couple of weeks, it is producing a great deal of initial positive impact on capacity and outcomes within the team, as well as great feedback from the staff working in the team.  The Board was advised that learning and evidence would be gathered from the pilot with the intention of then scaling up across the city to other reablement teams.

·  Achieving an annualised financial saving of £17.3m – the Board discussed the key benefits of the Home First programme for all partners and how this would likely result in significant annualised savings.  As a long-term transformation programme, the Board acknowledged that such savings would not be immediate and will also need to be balanced against potential cost increases linked to future demographic changes.

·  Patient experience and feedback – as well as gathering statistical data, the Board emphasised the importance of hearing directly from patients too and was assured that patient experience measures would be captured throughout the programme.

·  Causes of re-admissions – the Board was advised that a thematic analysis is undertaken with regard to admissions which will pick up issues in relation to any re-admissions.  It was noted that while causes for re-admissions are varied and multiple, there is collaborative working through the Transfer of Care hub to ensure that patients are safe at home.

·  Virtual Ward – reference was made to increasing patient confidence with regard to the ‘virtual ward’ and it was suggested that the Scrutiny Board may also wish to hold an informal briefing session on this.

·  Patient advocacy – the Board recognised the importance of having robust advocacy arrangements in place particularly for those patients without close family support networks. Linked to this, reference was made to the Primary Care Access Line (PCAL) that is an innovative service which facilitates advice and guidance from primary to secondary care to ensure a smooth transition for patients and a better patient outcome.  It was also noted that Third Sector organisations have been commissioned to be proxy family representatives.

The Chair thanked everyone for their contribution to the Board’s discussion.

RESOLVED - That the report, along with Members comments, be noted.