Representatives from Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust to provide a briefing on the emerging reviews of acute and specialised services.

Representatives of Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust attended the meeting and explained how the Devon-wide “case for change” which underpinned the Sustainability and Transformation plan highlighted concerns in relation to acute services.  These included:

·         Increased demand for treatment and care meaning longer waiting times

·         The current configuration of services was designed for the historical demand model

·         The acute system in Devon costing more than funded levels

It was noted that some acute services were currently classed as fragile which increased the risk of providers being required to implement short term, unplanned change.

The report presented to the Board set out the principles on which the review of acute services would be founded, namely:

·         Improving the health of the population

·         Improving the quality of care delivery

·         Achieving better value by reducing the cost of care

·         Improving the experience of staff working in the system of care and increasing the attractiveness of a career in the Devon health and social care system

The report also set out the criteria which would be used to guide the evaluation of any options against the current delivery of services.

Resolved:  (i)  that the Community Services Review Panel be renamed the Sustainability and Transformation Plan Review Panel;

(ii)        that the terms of reference of the Review Panel be extended to include the review of the Sustainability and Transformation Plan and any proposed service reconfigurations arising from the Plan;

(iii)       that the appropriate NHS organisations be requested to keep all Councillors, in particular members of the Review Panel, informed of proposed changes as early in the change process as possible to enable them to act as community leaders and ambassadors for change; such engagement to be a mix of informal and formal briefings; and

(iii)       that the principles and criteria under which the Acute Services Review will be undertaken be endorsed.