Issue - meetings

Jacky Mason & Fiona Jordan, NHS England to report

Jacky Mason, NHS England, reported that the NHS Diabetic Eye Screening Programme had been introduced to reduce the risk of vision loss in people with Diabetes.  Everyone with Diabetes who was 12 years of age or over should have their eyes screened once per year to check for signs of Diabetic Retinopathy.

The joint Barnsley and Rotherham Programme was commissioned in 2007 and provided by Barnsley Hospital Foundation Trust.  In line with the national trend, the diabetic population in Barnsley and Rotherham was increasing year on year.  It currently had 27.707 registered patients 25,906 of which were eligible for screening.  Those not eligible were managed in line with the national programme guidance and reviewed and validated every 3 months to ensure they still met the exclusion/suspension criteria.

The programme was currently commissioned on behalf of Public Health England via NHS England South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Area Team to the national service specification for Diabetic Eye Screening.

Programme performance was reported nationally on a quarterly basis and also into the quarterly Programme Board.  Any performance issues were escalated to the SYB Screening and Immunisation Advisory Group NHS England Public Health Commissioning Local Delivery Group and South Yorkshire Commissioners Group.

The programme in Rotherham was currently underperforming in some areas.  These were being monitored by an action plan with a monthly update submitted to the SYB Screening and Immunisation Team.

The combined programme update was currently above the Public Health Outcomes Framework standard of 70% but below the stretch achievable target of 80%.  Each individual programme showed a similar picture.  In attempting to address, patients who had DNA had been surveyed and some of the findings acted upon including offering clinics at evenings and weekends.

All cancer and non-cancer screening programmes were subject to an external quality assurance review.  The Barnsley and Rotherham review was planned for October, 2014 and would be the first programme in SYB to be quality assured in this manner.

Resolved:-  That the report be noted.