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Minutes of a regular meeting of the Health Service Forum on Tuesday November 11th 2003 held in the Larkfield Centre at 7.30 p.m.
Contents
Report of GGNHS Board meeting of 18th Nov 2003
Report of the South Trust Meeting of 26th November 2003.
Apologies were received from Margaret Hinds, Caryl Ogilvie, Eric Canning, Irene Addie, Elspeth Dick, Mary Markey.
Welcome
Pat Lally was in the Chair and welcomed everyone.
The guest speaker, Roderick McDougall an engineer from Glasgow City Council Land Services, spoke about the application currently being considered by the Council for planning permission for the ACADs and the impact on traffic and transport. The Health Board is still making changes to their requirements e.g. the renal unit will have a morning and afternoon session. The Council require to know the number of patients and staff using the building during peak time and thereafter at intervals during the day. The Board are planning to have a 60 bed geriatric unit on the ACAD campus and to use some of these beds as resuscitation beds for patients following day surgery. Part of the unit will be open at night and special arrangements must be made for people working late.
A green transport plan is now a legal requirement and a manager will have to be appointed to co-ordinate matters with staff such as car sharing. At present the ACAD planning application is being looked at as an add-on to the Victoria not a replacement. The existing junction will not cope when Annan Street is closed off. There has been a suggestion that Prospecthill Road could be widened and a new connecting road may have to be built. The Council has not as yet received the planning application for the Southern General. When this happens the whole traffic question will be reconsidered. The expansion of Gartnavel hospital is also being examined.
The meeting was opened to the floor to give members an opportunity to ask questions.
Mr McDougall was asked if he had seen a timetable for GGNHS Board’s decisions. Answer NO
Question: What happens to the planning application if there are problems such as lack of information? Answer: The council can grant planning permission in principle. Everything is done to nail down as many details as possible and anything that the departments is not happy with is put into conditions which have to be purified before the Board can get full approval. The application must be dealt with within a certain period as the Board can bypass the Council and go directly to the Scottish Executive. It was pointed out from the floor that the new extension to the Royal Infirmary was opened without the required parking spaces which were a condition of granting planning permission.
Mr McDougall was thanked for speaking at the meeting and answering questions.
ACAD UPDATE We now have information on the ACAD hours of opening & anticipated numbers of patients. Total number of episodes - 395,500. Number of patients per day 1,569. Hours of opening 7am-9pm. These hours vary depending on the treatment required, e.g. renal dialysis 7am-9pm.
Minutes
The minutes of the meeting of the 10th October were approved and adopted as correct. There were no matters arising.
Correspondence
The Secretary advised that a letter had been sent to Carolyn Leckie MSP following her part in the debate in parliament on Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Bill.
Dr Matthew Dunnigan spoke about the bed shortage in Glasgow. For the last month managers have been juggling beds and the situation is worse than last year. The North Trust has a budget deficit and this is impinging on winter bed money. The Trust has appealed to the Board for more money. Medical admissions are occupying orthopaedic beds and surgical admissions have had to be cancelled.
A multimillion pound extension to Bart’s Hospital in London attracted only two bids although three bids were required. This was reported in Building Magazine on 31st October 2003. The Secretary obtained a press cutting, and it would appear that one of the bidders has been selected. The French consortium which failed to win the contract was reported to have spare capacity. Why did this consortium not apply for the £140 million contract for ACADs in Glasgow?
Louise Laing reported that the Forum’s application for a grant from Glasgow City Council has been rejected. This is very disappointing. The City council have been very supportive of the Forum's work for many years, not only financially, but allowing us the use of the Council Chambers for special public meetings. We remain most appreciative of their help and would be grateful to have the opportunity to meet with them and plead our case for the continuation of the grant. The Council has expressed reservations about the Health Board's Acute Strategy and many councillors recognise the unease felt by their constituents at the proposed closure of the Vicky and its replacement by an ACAD. A letter has been sent to the Council asking for an explanation of the refusal.
Treasurer's Report
The Treasurer reported a balance of £1870.02 in the bank, however there are substantial sums still due to be repaid to generous benefactors.
James Sandeman, one of two community council representatives on the South Monitoring Group answerable to 41 community councils, reported that the Health Board will supply postage stamps. By choice the preparation of a report and printing will be carried out by himself and Catherine Fleming of Rutherglen.
Transport Committee Meeting
Professor Douglas McGregor reported on the meeting of the Transport Committee of the 6th November. The minutes and agenda of the previous meeting of the committee were received the day before the meeting. The majority of the members, being employees of the GGNHS Board feel that they can make it work. Niall McGrogan’s green strategy will be rolled out across the hospitals. It occurred to Douglas that he should have asked the group how many of them used public transport. He feels the Group will be split into two levels - higher level to support Niall McGrogan, second tier which may include MSPs will not be involved in forming strategy. We would hope to become involved in forming strategy. The first professional transport report was commissioned by the Forum. Douglas is extremely knowledgeable on transport issues and will offer very sound advice, given the opportunity.
AOCB: Members who had looked at the Outline Business case for the ACAD at the Birmingham City Hospital were very impressed with the amount of detail included in their proposal. It would appear that the situation in Birmingham is very similar to that in Glasgow.
Report of GGNHS Board meeting of 18th Nov 2003
Maternity services. 7 pamphlets will be available from the Board. A public meeting will be held on Tuesday 20 January 2004 in a Glasgow hotel.
A feasibility study for the development of cardiothoracic work for the region is taking place. The minister has since announced that this work will be done at the Jubilee Hospital and that Health Boards will not be charged.
ACAD Procurement: Pricewaterhouse Cooper "are content with the openness of the NHS Board's process and direction of travel" and emphasised “the importance of the development of the public sector comparator to ensure value for money and the robustness of the calculations and assumptions.” The Board was asked to endorse the submission to the SHHD of the proposal to engage with a single bidder based on the “Strategy for proceeding with a single bidder.” Pricewaterhouse Cooper's report stated “While we accept that the Board has followed the required guidance and rules for tendering, it is of concern that in taking forward this project with a single bidder the Board may set a precedent within Scotland for future projects to proceed where there is limited competition.”
The following requirements (amongst others) are listed:
:-agreed project scope with agreed assumptions in respect of patient activity
:-agreed output specifications
:-a robust public sector comparator
:-a shadow bid model
:-a strict affordability threshold, against which the bidders’ proposals will be judged
Beds At the ACADS: It was confirmed that the 60 Mansionhouse beds would be incorporated at the Victoria ACAD site and that 90 recently built care of the elderly beds at Stobhill would remain. Planning agreement is expected in December/January 2004.
The Chairman of the Board asked for questions on the main points for approval. There were none. The Board endorsed the submission to the SHHD of the proposals to engage with a single bidder based on the strategy for proceeding with a single bidder.
Beatson: The project to replace the Beatson is on track as a public funded project. Target completion date 2007.
Waiting times: The figures (over 9 months), excluding those deferred under various availability codes which amounted to 4395 patients, has reduced to approximately 322. Continued progress to the target of zero by the end of December depended on the pressure on beds provided by the winter influenza etc.
Report of the South Trust Meeting of 26th November 2003.
Mr Calderwood advised that agreement had now been reached with Land Services of the City Council re the land required for the ACAD at the QPR Site. The proposal to declare the land surplus to requirement and sell it to the NHS will go before Property Services this week. This should permit an application for outline planning early in December. A staff side member raised the issue of soft FM services going out to tender, and they had written to the Chief Exec.opposing this. They had requested a representative on the ACAD development committee. The site for the new laundry will be in Hillington.
Emergency Admissions still on the Increase - especially surgical admissions. This has resulted in hospital closures over the last two weekends. The Trust is puzzled by this. Progress is being made on bed blocking.
Tom Divers, Chief Exec of the Health Board, will address the issues raised by staff side reps. on the question of putting out Soft Services to tender within the ACAD contract.
Winter Vomiting Bug at the Victoria. The Trust has a robust reporting system and infection control team in place. All incidents are reported to the press, but they are no worse than other hospitals. Due to the design of other hospital buildings they are able to isolate infected patients more successfully and therefore do not have to close to new admissions. Other hospitals do not report the situation as a matter of course. Dr Cowan felt that the whole question of reporting such incidents may well be altered once Trusts are wound up and they come under the umbrella of the Health Board.
Date of the next meeting - Tuesday 9th December at 7.30 pm.
Niall McGrogan of the GGNHS Board will be guest speaker on the subject of transport, especially the Green Strategy mentioned by the City Council representative, Roderick McDougall.
Remember the Forum's dinner on Saturday 13th December, at the White Cart in Busby at 7.30.
Please ensure that your payment reaches the Treasurer by 9th December at the latest.