Agenda item

-        Hester Rowell, Head of Quality & Patient Experience, Yorkshire Ambulance Service, andDavid Bannister, A and E Locality Manager for Rotherham. 

Further to Minute No. 42 of the meeting of the Health Select Commission held on 24^th October, 2013, Members welcomed Hester Rowell, David Bannister, Steve Rendi and Amanda Best (representing the Yorkshire Ambulance Service)

 

Hester Rowell, Head of Quality and Patient Experience, Yorkshire Ambulance Service, and Steve Rendi, Locality Manager (Rotherham), reported on the Quality Accounts which would be published in June, 2014 and would provide information on Service performance in the period between April, 2013 and March, 2014. The Service was inviting comments from partner organisations and from the public on the contents of the Quality Accounts report, with a deadline for submission of responses of 31^st December, 2013.

 

Members received a presentation which highlighted the following issues:-

 

Clinical Quality Strategy

-          Key part of the Integrated Business Plan

-          Sets out key clinical quality priorities for 2012-2015

-          Focus on evidence based practice and national priorities

-          Focus on most important issues for the people who use the service

 

What influences the Yorkshire Ambulance Service Clinical Quality Strategy?

-          Learning from the outcome of the Inquiry by Lord Francis into care failings at the Mid-Staffordshire NHS Trust

                                     

Quality Accounts 2012-13

-          Accountability

-          Transparency

-          Consultation

 

Current Priorities

-          Improving the experience and outcomes for patients in rural areas

-          Working with care and residential homes

-          Achieving a reduction in harm to patients (when being transported by ambulance) through the implementation of a safety thermometer tool – it was acknowledged that the incidence of such harm was extremely rare

-          Public education

-          Patient Transport Service improvement

 

Progress

-          NHS safety thermometer

Increased awareness raising across staff on safety thermometer and harms

Review of Patient Transport Service booking process

Review of dynamic risk assessments

Audit of equipment on vehicles

Standardisation of procedures

Education and training review

Regional Falls Network

 

-          Public Education

Choose well

: Accident and Emergency (A&E) and the ‘999’ ambulance services are intended for people with life-threatening or serious conditions which need immediate attention, such as heart attacks, strokes, breathing problems or severe bleeding

: if someone needs treatment or advice for a minor illness, ailment or injury, there are a number of services available – self-care, pharmacy, NHS Direct, GPs, walk-in centre, minor injuries unit;

: Pharmacists provide an easily accessible service on the high street and at many supermarkets and can give confidential, expert, free advice;

: by choosing the most appropriate service, people can help to ensure that emergency services such as A&E and ‘999’ are available for those who really need them.

 

-          Working with care and residential homes

Working in partnership to ascertain reasons for ‘999’ emergency calls, because a high percentage are received from care homes.

 

-          Patient Transport Service for routine appointments

Patient Transport Service and recruitment

Restructuring the management team

Reviewing how the communication function operates

Re-assessing how work is planned and scheduled

Reviewing rotas to ensure better links between the service and patient needs

Improving how the Service listens and responds to patient and staff feedback

Reviewing fleet and estate requirements

 

-          The Yorkshire Ambulance Service may not achieve Foundation Trust status until 2015, although the Service continues to act, report and engage with communities as a Foundation Trust.

 

-          Next steps

Roadshow launch – “Spring into Safety”

Multiple communication channels – Yorkshire Ambulance Service television, social media sites, face to face;

Steering Group to sustain improvements

Review structure of clinical supervision

Review of education and training

Patient safety culture work

 

Consultation

-          Listening to members, communities and staff

 

Rotherham Accident and Emergency (A&E)

-          Preparing for Winter

-          A&E operational re-design

-          Incidence of priority ‘red’ emergency calls and response times

-          Collaborative working in Yorkshire and the clinical leadership framework were highlighted.

 

After the presentation, Members asked questions about the following matters:-

 

: financial savings to be made by the Yorkshire Ambulance Service, during the next five years and the public consultation process concerning the budget reductions and service targets; it was noted that the Service is recruiting staff throughout Yorkshire;

 

: service performance targets and whether there is any impact on mortality rates;

 

: provision of specialist responses with different vehicles to different types of patient (eg: bariatric (obese) patients);

 

: ambulance ‘turn-around’ times at hospital A&E departments;

 

: the possible impact (eg: on ambulance journey distances and times) of the coalition Government’s proposed reform of A&E services.

 

Resolved:- (1) That the information provided in the presentation be noted.

 

(2) That the Health Select Commission shall provide a response to the Yorkshire Ambulance Service Quality Accounts report 2013/2014, as now indicated and the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman shall approve the details of the response.