Agenda item

Joanna Saunders, Head of Health Improvement, and Michael Holmes, Policy Partnership Officer

Michael Holmes, Policy Officer, and Joanna Saunders, Head of Health Improvement, gave the following presentation on the Rotherham Health and Wellbeing Strategy:-

Health and Wellbeing Board

-          Established by Health and Social Care Act 2012

-          Brings together Council, Clinical Commissioning Group and other key partners including Healthwatch and Service providers

-          Produce Joint Strategic Needs Assessment – evidence base for health needs     (http://www.rotherham.gov.uk/jsna/)

-          Develop Strategy to improve health and wellbeing

-          Ensure partners’ spending plans were geared towards achieving the Strategy’s aims and objectives

Health and Social Care Integration

-          Better Care Fund – pooled funding to transform Health and Social Care Services

-          Critically it was about person-centred care

-          Rotherham Better Care Fund Plan approved January, 2015; key target to reduce hospital admissions

What does the evidence tell us?

-          Life expectancy below England average and significant gap between the Borough’s most and least deprived areas

-          Population changes – ageing population and people living longer with poorer health

-          28.5% of adults were classed as obese, worse than the England average

-          Relatively high rate of hospital stays for alcohol-related harm

-          Higher than average adult smoking levels and smoking-related deaths

-          Rate of sexually transmitted infections was worse than average

-          Rates of death from cardiovascular disease and cancer were worse than the England average

Key Health Challenges:  Children and Young People

-          Child poverty was worse than the England average with 22.8% of under 16s living in (relative) poverty

-          9.8% of children aged 4-5 and 23.4% of children aged 10-11 were classified as obese

-          The rate of diagnosis of sexually transmitted infections in young people aged 15-24 years was above the England average

-          Relatively high rates of smoking in pregnancy, contributing to increased risk of stillbirth, low birth weight and neonatal deaths

-          Rotherham’s breastfeeding rate was amongst the lowest in the region – contributing to levels of childhood obesity

The Strategy (2012 to 2015) – Current Thinking

-          Explicit focus on children and young people

-          Increased emphasis on mental health

-          Help people to take responsibility for their health

-          Principles of prevention and early intervention

-          Work with communities – asset-based approach

-          Build on good practice in Rotherham and elsewhere

-          Meaningful indicators to measure progress

Feedback from Voluntary and Community Sector

-          Increase emphasis on and investment in prevention and early intervention

-          Holistic approach to health and Wellbeing Board utilising expertise from a range of organisations

-          Recognise key transition points rather than waiting for people to hit crisis

-          Real commitment to “asset-based” approach – not just as a cover for cuts

-          Make the Health and Wellbeing Board “system” easier for people to access, understand and navigate

-          Target the most disadvantaged regardless of age, including a renewed focus on healthy ageing

For September, 2015

-          Health and Wellbeing Board approve Strategy including long term strategic outcomes

-          Outcomes inform partners’ emerging commissioning plans

After September 2015

-          Annual delivery plan, informed by outcomes and indicators, with associated performance measures

-          Detailed plans for specific themes/programmes with linkages to wider partnership strategies and objectives

-          Further consultation about the strategy

The Health Select Commission Members discussed the following issues:-

: housing need, the availability of appropriate housing and the development of the Older People’s Housing Strategy;

: communication strategy and providing information and services for the most vulnerable people (eg;  skills audit, staff training, evidence based quality practice);

: the importance of inter-agency and partnership working, including the voluntary and community sector organisations and service providers;

: the wider determinants of a person’s health (influences include : neighbourhood, housing, employment or lack of employment, lifestyle issues, availability of appropriate services);

: Public Health and Planning working together with regard to housing, infrastructure and provision of activities;

: the availability and impact of services for people (of all ages and in all communities) who experience mental ill health;

: different measures which could be used to help people to stop smoking; it was noted that there had been a reduction in the rate of smoking in pregnancy to 18.3%, which was the lowest it had ever been and the rate of smoking in the general population was 18.9%, also the lowest recorded.

Resolved:- (1) That the presentation on the draft, refreshed Rotherham Health and Wellbeing Strategy, as now submitted, be noted.

(2) That a further report on the final, approved version of the Rotherham Health and Wellbeing Strategy be submitted to the next meeting of the Health Select Commission.

(3) That the Health Select Commission recommends that mental health should be an explicit priority in the refreshed Rotherham Health and Wellbeing Strategy, including the further development of services and support for people of all ages.