Minutes of the meeting held on 9th October 2012 in Cheltenham
Present:
Alex Winterbone Suffolk
Krys Jarvis Shropshire
Alan Moore Manchester
Samantha Sterling Leeds
Janine Eagle Manchester
Brian Smith Northern
Rory Davies Preston
Frances Beavis Gloucestershire
Claire Watt Horsham
Caroline Desjardins Leicester
Elaine Coope Airedale
Angela Cannon Stoke on Trent
Henry Lumley Bristol
Sarah Sherwood Bedfordshire
Jane Stroud Gloucestershire
Nikki White Cornwall
Dilys Cockerell Bristol
Margaret Staples Harold Wood
Apologies
Kath Griffiths Crewe
Barbara Hatton Wigan
Hazel Derbyshire Preston
Julia Cunningham Whizz Kidz
Carol Bartley Salford
Jan Smith Newcastle
Sue Cobby East Sussex
Yvonne Baron Chorley, South Ribble & West Lancs
Jane Thurlow York
Introductions
Minutes of the meeting on 3rd July 2012 were agreed
Matters Arising
Web Site: Ian has sent us a “Proposal for an enhanced Directory of Services”, basically this offers us a choice, do we keep our own directory of services or do we let NHS Choices take it over. NHS Choices is the site used by the call handlers to give information on the new 111 telephone advice service, so if we are not there then people will not be given that information. If we decide to let NHS Choices take it over Ian could do a quarterly upload or each PCT could fill in a proforma and get it on the site.
1 wheelchair service is currently showing on the site (SEQOI wheelchair service).
Agreed that we need to be proactive, each service would need to work out who their lead in the PCT is for the 111 service and get them to enter the service details. Some concern was expressed about those services who do not link in with the Forum in some way.
Private suppliers have got themselves on to the site so call handlers may direct enquirers to the private sector
Ian is going to go back to NHS Choices with some further questions, Agreed Ian will find out as much information as he can and then disseminate so we can move on it as quickly as possible. If someone needs to write to a central contact then Henry is happy to do that on behalf of the Forum.
Once details are on the 111 site a link to that would be put on our website to the 111 DOS.
Is it possible to have the area reps on the website AW to send address list to Sarah
Competencies
Claire reported back on the draft competencies previously circulated and attached below. They decided on foundation / intermediate/ advanced levels to get away from bandings because of local differences in the bands awarded to therapists.
They have combined information already available from standards, current competencies, KSF’s, and tried not to be too prescriptive but to use generic terms to differentiate between the levels, if it included “you will know xyz” the document would be huge.
In some areas there are sections where individual services could list their specific equipment so you could tick off competency in each model of wheelchair or cushion.
No amendments have been made on initial feedback received by e mail until after discussion at this meeting. Agreed that it is a really useable document and is what the Forum envisaged as being useful.
Discussion included whether there is any organisation who could take it over and put it in a format that is recognisable to everyone:
Ø Skills for Health,
Ø Is there a lead for KSF – no its all local and some trusts are not using it.
Claire will contact Skills for Health – Henry may have a contact. Krys will contact West Midlands Commissioners re AQP and see if they can push it into the specification because they are tweaking the AQP specs at the moment.
Please read the document and comment.
Elaine to take out Krys’s comments send AW the electronic version to go in the minutes with the “draft do not use” on it so no-one can use them from the web site.
Please make comments to Claire by 19th November.
Brunel University have done a lot of work on the novice to expert route, and the right use of terminology, Claire will investigate.
ResMag competencies have been endorsed by IPEM, Coventry University and ResMag, and are on our website. ResMag applied for membership of the Healthcare Scientists, likely to start apprenticeships ( Band 2 – band 4) and work their way up. Brian will send AW the latest proposal to circulate.
Discussion round Band 3 / 4 competencies and duties for assistant practitioners.
Terms of Reference and Membership
Further reply from Jenny Rolf MND Association who disagrees with our position we still feel that if we agree to all AQP practitioners being part of the meeting it would be too big.
Jenny would be happy to give us a presentation on MND but members did not feel that this was useful at this time but would welcome a written paper.
Specialist Commissioning
The Specialist Commissioning Board published some guidelines last week, there will need to be national tariffs.
Someone at DoH is working on wheelchair services tariffs and this work will filter out eventually.
There is still no official definition of complex.
The 1st year of specialist commissioning will be parallel running coming in properly in 2014/15
Further meeting next week
Krys has been invited to speak at an APLLG meeting in London ‘Utilising AHPs' in National Commissioning to Improve Patient Outcomes’ on 19th Oct
What do we want out of this at the end of it: There is a conflict between care closer to home and volume for specialist commissioning at a local level.
Link from Henry to report below
http://www.dh.gov.uk/health/files/2012/09/Clinical-Advisory-Group-for-Prescribed-Services.pdf
Whizz Kidz
Cathy Ryan had attended the North West Innovation day, and an e mail from her regarding this was read to members.
Krys went to Royal Society of Medicine “Tackling Mobility Challenges in Children” event.
Feedback on presentations – Whizz Kidz workshop, showed “Child in a Chair in a Day” presentation, wanted the group to work out how this could be achieved, what are the drawbacks, After some discussion agreed that Nick Goldup will be invited to our meeting in the hope of getting some answers to some set questions. Krys will co-ordinate questions and send them in advance and also request feedback from pilot schemes.
E mail any questions to Krys, we will assume he can make the January meeting unless we hear differently.
General discussion about “Child in a Chair in a Day” and the current work around it in various parts of the country and some have been told that this is likely to be a CQin target.
Krys joined a panel from the National Innovation Centre ‘Chair 4 Life competition presentations from:
Renfrew
Cardiff University
Whizz Kidz
The brief included
Ø prototype model by March
Ø project under £300K
Ø suitable for 80% of the market.
Contract was awarded to Renfrew with expectation that they work with Whizz Kidz regarding user involvement.
To be showcased at the NHS Expo at the Excell Arena 13/14 March 2013 http://www.healthcareinnovationexpo.com/
Discussion about the provision of riser seats, some do it for exceptional funding some have allowed patients to pay the top up. Some are working with education; all agreed that it is an issue that has many hitches. Brian has a small pilot project in progress and will share the results.
Engagement day – e mail sent out 22nd September, the day is 26th October in Coventry. You need to book a place contact . “The purpose of the day is to provide input into the design and development of an innovative wheelchair based on extensive research into the needs and requests of users, which, we believe, will play a key role in the transformation of current wheelchair services across the NHS”
AQP and update on Pilot Sites.
No new information
Bedfordshire are still progressing as are one or two other areas but most seemed to have backed off.
Paralympic Legacy
E Mail from Alex Kamadu, Whizz Kidz have done a survey focused on young people at school and how the paralympics has affected them, he was wondering if there was scope for doing something similar about provision of Sports Chairs for all age groups, DoH is looking to create more access to sport and the provision of equipment to enable people to join in if they so wish. There are government funds available, so the question was should we be getting involved in assessment.
Agreed money should be focused on sports clubs? This is not something we are commissioned to do unless this is something that the commissioners choose to be involved in.
Is there something that we and PMG could do about getting some good PR by supporting the initiative and signposting people in the right direction?
Krys will write back to him saying we are happy to signpost but will carry on providing everyday wheelchairs.
RTT
E mail received from Alex Kamadu regarding the Allied Health Professionals Referral to Treatment Revised Guide 2011. Krys will write back that we already doing it.
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_131948
Changes in Service Delivery Budget Pressures around the Country.
Leicester – have employed a technician ( Wheelchair Technician not RE or OT Band 3) saved the service £26K.
Preston – main pressure is internal savings from the Trust, savings have been delivered every year and can’t do it again without breeching 12 week target.
North East – combined AR tendering exercise going from 4 sites to 2 reconditioning on 1 site for 10 services.
Cornwall – Service is a Social Enterprise, Commissioner only willing to issue 2 inch cushions regardless of pressure needs, working with Tissue Viability to highlight the effects of that.
Bedfordshire – appointed storeman and made cost savings from that.
Essex – budget pressures service can see people within 18 weeks but can’t afford the hardware to deliver within 18 weeks. Commissioner has been seconded to work as Centre Manager for a while which has been helpful.
Sussex – cost pressures, overspent, staffing issues. CQuin target for children started 1.10.12
Airedale – CIP pressures, review with PCT been useful preparing a briefing paper for CCG.
Leeds – realigned the budget to last year’s outturn.
Bristol – on a variable tariff, commissioners looking at AQP, cover 4 PCT’s who are looking at different things, going to be difficult for clinicians who will have to deal differently with different patients. Starting e referral shortly not on an N3 link so it is open to all.
North Staffs – in process of tendering AR contract bringing together 3 different contracts. Using technician band 3 and have a band 5 technician that works in clinical areas.
Gloucester – looking at skill mix, Band 4 technician service delay was in handover technician will do less complex handovers. Starting text reminders in a bid to cut DNA rates.
Manchester – budgetary pressures, so far managed to issue all equipment within time limits. Started a panel for decisions about expensive bits of equipment which says OK or have a rethink this is working well. If equipment is being changed within 9 months of initial issue being referred to the panel to try to see if it was got right in the first place and if not why not. Panel = Alan, Physio and OT. Looking at e referrals and paperless office.
Suffolk – transferred to private sector last week. Using technician for set up, handover, hoisting. Budgetary pressures.
Shropshire – employed a clinical assistant band 3, will do some basic assessments. Budgetary pressures but due to staff cuts can’t get the assessments done.
Benchmarking information. If we are under pressure is it worth doing something about benchmarking who is doing what with what. Agreed that it would be useful if we had something. Dr Fosters collects information for other parts of the NHS, Henry could ask how you get this done. ? PMG grant. ? research project. Information also needs to be timely could we do something quick and dirty,
Thought about Survey Monkey which is a free web based survey tool.
We all do activity reports could we compare them.
Could not decide what we want to achieve as everyone wants different things and there is no-one available to do it so although we agreed that it would be a good idea agreed leave it to everyone to contact each other for the information they require.
Discussion around comparing job descriptions and person specs for band 2, 3 and 4 technical instructors. Sarah will ask Ian if there is an NHS document share drop box or we could use the website as long as that bit was password protected. We really ought to be looking at a competency document for these grades but at the moment no-one was willing to take on writing it. Sam has also done some work on band 3 which she is willing to share.
ResMag update
Colin Gibson is looking at RE Technician at bands 2, 3 and 4.
Coventry – Last cohort for the post graduate MSc started this year they won’t run this again. Modernising scientific careers is going to change the way things work, they have awarded Bradford the degree course for the future. There will only be the post graduate diploma at Coventry.
Apprenticeships for bands 2-4.
Asked about John Ward at MHRA not really interested in attending meetings regularly but would come to one to update us. Please still send through to MHRA if you have incidents and maybe feedback to Brian if you are reporting stuff and getting no response.
Document - Innovation , Health and Wealth (includes Child in a Chair in a Day). Rory thought there may be some money behind this document which would account for Trusts interest in the subject.
Any Other Business
E mail re Fortuna which was sent round recently Brian stated that spares are available from Radcliffe same part numbers etc. as before.
Associate Parliamentary Limbloss Group – Krys gets the info do we want it forward – YES
Auditing Approved Repairers – has anyone got any documentation they are willing to share?