Issue - meetings

Background:

The Cabinet accepted this as an urgent item given that the final decision on the future configuration of Hyper Acute Stroke Services for Kent and Medway was originally scheduled to be made on 10 January 2019, which would have been before the next Cabinet meeting. Consideration and approval of this report would enable the Council to apply for a Judicial Review, if necessary, at the earliest opportunity.

This report provided details of the NHS in Kent and Medway’s proposals to establish three Hyper Acute Stroke Units (HASUs), the aim of which was to reorganise services so that specialist stroke staff could more consistently deliver high quality care around the clock, and in so doing reduce deaths and long-term disability from stroke for local people. The report stated that on 17 September 2018, the NHS in Kent and Medway published its preferred option for the three new units, with units in William Harvey Hospital (Ashford), Maidstone Hospital and Darent Valley Hospital.

The report provided details of the Council’s position on the preferred options, specifically it was concerned that the decision on the preferred option was not in the best interests of the health service in Kent and Medway and it was concerned how the Joint Committee of Clinical Commissioning Groups (JCCCGs) were led to make the decision.

Therefore, the report provided details of how the Council could challenge the decision, as set out in section 6 of the report.

The report stated that the matter had been discussed in a number of meetings including the Joint Health Scrutiny Committee (comprising representatives from the four affected local authority areas – Kent, Medway, East Sussex and Bexley) on 14 December 2018 and the Kent and Medway Joint Health and Wellbeing Board, also on 14 December 2018.

It was noted that the Joint Committee of Clinical Commissioning Groups was originally due to make the final decision on the future configuration of Hyper Acute Stroke Services for Kent and Medway on 10 January 2019 although this had now been put back to the end of January 2019.

Reasons:

The Council on 11 October 2018 formally resolved to oppose any proposal which would not see Medway Maritime Hospital become a Hyper Acute Stroke Unit.