Issue - meetings

This report informs the Committee of progress made since the Chief Executive and the Chairman of the Trust attended the March 2016 meeting of the Committee.

Discussion:

The Chief Executive of Medway NHS Foundation Trust introduced this report which informed Members of progress made since the report considered at the last meeting of the Committee held on 17 March (minute no. 874).

Members raised a number of questions and comments as follows:

·         Medical Model – in response to a comment that the reduction in the average length of stay on acute wards may not be a positive development as some people discharged themselves voluntarily, the Chief Executive advised that the figures did not include this group. However, the fact that some people voluntarily discharged themselves probably showed a breakdown in communications.  A Member asked for more information on how the Trust had achieved this reduction. The Chief Executive commented that this Model was a contemporary way of providing care and was based on an established model elsewhere. She undertook to provide more detail in writing about how the Model worked.

·         Home First – in response to a comment that there was a lack of confidence in community services being available to provide care to people when they needed it and that it had been a case of a redistribution of funds rather than an injection of funds into community services, the Chief Executive commented on the positive feedback she had received regarding this service. There was a need for the whole system to work together and provide support on a 24 hour basis as happened in acute services and a need to provide Home First at scale.

In response to a comment made about a negative experience of a , whose individual needs had not been met, the Chief Executive undertook to discuss this case with the Member outside the meeting but commented it appeared the circumstances, as described, suggested the constituent had not been cared for under Home First. 

·         Staffing – a Member asked how many nurses had left the Trust due to inadequate performance. The Chief Executive was unable to give figures but emphasised that staff were managed through a performance management framework. In terms of recruitment, she responded that the Trust was now attracting more interest when vacancies were advertised but would like to see more experienced nurses applying as opposed to people wishing to become a nurse. She was pleased to report that more staff were now remaining in employment each month than were leaving.

·         Emergency Department – a Member asked about the roadway improvements and access to the hospital from Windmill Road. The Chief Executive responded that this was part of the improvements to the department and the Trust would be working with the Council to address what was a bottle neck.

·         Next phase of the Recovery Programme -A Member commented she had been impressed on a recent tour of the hospital by the new facilities and it was clear that visible progress had been made. Other Members congratulated the Trust on the progress made whilst recognising that further improvements were still needed. A Member asked how confident the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 76