Healthwatch Hounslow Meeting Minutes – 18thFebruary 2016
CAN Mezzanine
2, Treaty Centre
Hounslow High St
W3 1ES
Present:
In Attendance:
Apologies: / Stephen Otter
Robert Hardy-King
Celia Golden
John Marshall
Tim Spilsbury
Mystica Burridge
Ken Newlan
Munira Thobani
Stefan Vlajkovic
Gerri Green
Beena Bhanu
Steve Ringham
Arun Gupta
Dr Bimal Roy Bhanu
Stephen Clark
Lorelei Watson
Tauriq Mehkary
George Foster
Sue Charteris / Committee Member & Chair of Healthwatch Hounslow (HWH)
Committee Member & Chair of Your Voice in Health and Social Care (YVHSC)
Committee Member
Committee Member
Chief Officer
Volunteer Coordinator & Support Officer
Committee Member
Committee Member
Support Officer
Committee Member
Committee Member
Committee Member
Committee Member
Committee Member
Committee Member
Committee Member
Committee Member
Committee Member
Committee Member / SO
RHK
CG
JM
TS
MB
KN
MT
SV
CG
BB
SR
AG
BR
SC
LW
TM
GF
SC
DATE OF NEXT MEETING: HEART OF HOUNSLOW 17thMARCH 2016
  1. Welcome & Introductions
SO opened the meeting and welcomed Committee Members.
  1. Apologies
Apologies noted.
  1. Minutes of the last meeting

Last meeting’s minutes were checked over and agreed.
  1. Chief Officer’sfeedback – TS
TS went over the 4 evaluations that HWH is working on. Young People’s Mental Health,
Extra Care, Acute Services haveall been progressing extremely well. However, the Personal Care Framework report has exposed some problems with the care providers themselves rather than the framework.
  • There will be a slight change in direction of the report, which will have a section focusing on access issues with a ‘mystery shopper’ type of approach on care providers. Issues with communication from the providers could mean family and carers of patients who need to contact certain staff in the framework being effected.
  • The Commissioning Manager and Contracts Manager have been made aware of this and will help, but it should not have to come to this.
SO asked how many are directly contracted by LBH and how many are spot purchase. Also stated that providers need to understand our relationship with the CQC.
TSexplained that we have alerted Martyn of our findings. Also mentioning that contact details provided are out of date on the LBH database, after only a year.
RHK advised possibly contacting the rehab team in WMUH who hand over people to a care provider and find out what responses they have had.
SO explained that these providers are commissioned by the local authority who asked us to do this report. By obstructing the project, they are not helping themselves.
Contract Monitoring
TS discussed contract monitoring. Patient experiences have returned to their normal levels. Volunteer hours are almost up, will be more next month. We received negative experiences for the GP services and social services at WMUH.HRCH has been in contact due to concerns highlighted in patient experience reports regarding their MSK physio department based at WMUH.
RHK suggested talking to receptionists/frontline staff themselves, because there might be other factors determining why they arebeing criticized, maybe to do with Doctor’s conflicting priorities.
TS explained MB has attempted to engage with surgery staff, but they have failed in making contact. Will be meeting with Sue Jeffers (CCGManaging Director) to discuss this.
Emerging Communities
TS moved on to talking about the Emerging Communities Outreach, funded by The Innovation Fund. The plan is to develop a booklet translated in 7 languages. As well as developing an Emerging Communities Volunteer Programme to reach out to the community.
SO noted that some communities in the borough, such as the Polish have a business network, and it might be worth finding out if there are any for the emerging communities.
CG stated that people from emerging communities need active interaction rather than leaflets. TS agreed with this and identified the volunteers as delivering forums and support groups within their own communities.
MT discussed 111 being described as a call center and there being a low level of expertise on the other side of the phone, which is especiallydifficult for people whose English is not their first language.
CG suggested a possible review of 111 and tomeet with NHS England.
SO explained there are different strands of the 111 and this needs to be looked into with more detail.
Next Financial Year
TS discussed whether CarePlace is something HWH can have a look at in the first quarter of the next financial year. We are now in a position where we can undertake reports we feel to be important.
SO stated one of the enquiries that can be made on care is asking people where they got their information from. Martin Waddington (commissioner) would be interested in a report looking into CarePlace.
CG explained that CarePlace has nothing to offer for blind/deaf communities. Disability Community Forum (DCF) will be willing to help and inform this review.
MT mentioned the concerns bought up at the last AGM about elderly people not being hydrated at WMUH.
SO explained there was more than one comment highlighting this problem. Water being delivered to elderly patients but not encouraged or supported to drink.
RHK said that the red tray system should be combatting this.
SO stated that as this was discussed in the AGM it should be factored in to our monitoring of the issues at WMUH.
Action: Review of 111 as a report and to meet with NHS England.
Action: Reviewing the hydration problem at WMUH
  1. Primary Care Co-Commissioning – TS
TS discussed the Personal Medical Services review undertaken by the CCG. They are looking for 5 key indicators of GP effectiveness in the borough, and making them all mandatory. These involve GP patient experience, communication, access etc. HWH will be looking to monitor these GP surgeries in the future. This also means the LHM system will likely be funded by the CCG, as it will be crucial in getting feedback on these 5 indicators.
TS also saidone of our evaluations will be to review flexible openings on GP services. Furthermore, the digital technology being used at GPs (such as electronic prescriptions) will also be reviewed by HWH in the future as the CCG wants more people to utilize this.
TS went on tomention the Volunteers and GP Practices programmeand that itwill be funded by the end of this financial year by the CCG.
SO explained there are two types of GPs, one gets more funding and has more servicesto provide, while the other is the standard local GP. The plan is for the funding to beredistributed equally between the GP surgeries.
CG suggested finding out who these better funded GPs are, as their staff will be effected as well asthe people enjoying their services.
  1. Resources – SC
SO talked about this year’s retendering process, as it is the last one. It will be difficult to map out what direction we will be going towards at the moment. Other organizations will be able to compete through during this process. Healthwatchs’ all over the country are going through this and will need funds from the local authority.
TS added thatthe health advocacy service will be retendered as well, as it is in the same contract.
SO discussed different charities collaborating to provide a joint service.
  1. Healthwatch/CQC – SO
SO explained that the Chair Person and Chief Officer of HWE have now completed their incumbent periods and have been replaced by interim staff who report to the CQC, not the department of health. HW is now the patient voice for the CQC. Providers need to know we have CQC working with us as well.
SO also mentioned that there are twoCQC inspectors in the borough.
CG suggested it would be a good idea to invite them to the meetings and factor them into the debate.
Action: CQC to be invited to future meeting
  1. HCN Executive Committee – TS
TS discussed attending the Hounslow Community NetworkExecutive Committee. They provide services and we monitor and scrutinize them, TS recommended we should not attend again.
Action: TS to discuss with Martin Waddington
  1. LBH Budget Cuts – SO
SO discussed attending the Overview and Scrutiny Committee that looked at the budget cuts. There will be a reduction in spending on Diabetes as well as TB. Even though both are a problem in the borough. The basis is that they will get funding from other sources. An increase in the level of activity to reduce risk is need, not a reduction in spend.
SO also discussed joint-commissioning, which saved money by working together with the local authority and the NHS. The saving was 1.5 million. One vacant Team Manager position at Mental Health Service has been vacant and since deleted in order to save money. This money will hopefully go towards Mental Health services.
  1. Mental Health Provision – SO
SO explainedWest London Mental Health Trust have a proposal on a new improved service, with the CCG funding it around£850,000.
MT stated that growing inequality means growing mental health problems.
  1. Diabetes – SO
SO explained public health money is being reduced in diabetes. Diabetes is not a joint up solution. It is still a concern.Prevention is key and diabetes has been a problem for a while in the borough.
Dentistry and obesity are priorities for the borough, as this will improve diet and lifestyle, and in turn battling diabetes.
CG asked if we should invite someone from Public Health to come in and discuss their priorities.
SO said Imran(Director of Public Health) should come in and we can give him evidence and show him the scale of the problem.
CG wantedto question how they monitor the value of their prevention work and their decisions. HWH has enough data to talk about what illnesses are high in the borough so we can discuss this.
SO mentioned that the person who commissions the Diabetes service from the CCG should be involved. As this will make it into a more joint-up project, and if that works, the same could be done with Mental Health.
RHK said dentist prices need to be set out more clearly. With the info provided for the public at every dentists.
Action: Invite Imran to discuss priorities on public health.
Next meeting: 17th March 2016
Venue: Heart of Hounslow

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