Issue - meetings

(i)          to note the actions as outlined in this report for the transfer of patients from Rosemount Medical Group (RMG) to other practices and instruct the Chief Officer to implement the changes;

(ii)        to agree to incur expenditure of up to £144,026, to be funded from the Primary Care Reserve Fund;

(iii)       to make the Direction, as attached at appendix A, and instructs the Chief Officer to issue the Direction to NHS Grampian;

(iv)       to instruct the Rosemount Project Team to consider accessibility issues for patients being transferred to new GP practices; and

(v)        to thank First Bus and public sector partners for supporting the Partnership during this challenging time.

The Board had before it a report by Lorraine McKenna (Head of Central Locality, ACHSCP) which presented a follow up report as requested by the Board on 28 August 2018, on the preferred option to transfer patients to other practices as a result of the closure of the Rosemount Medical Group.

That the Board –

(a)           Note the actions as outlined in this report for the transfer of patients from Rosemount Medical Group (RMG) to other practices and instruct the Chief Officer to implement the changes;

(b)           Agree to incur expenditure of up to £144,026, to be funded from the Primary Care Reserve Fund; and

(c)           Make the Direction, as attached at appendix A, and instructs the Chief Officer to issue the Direction to NHS Grampian.

Lorraine McKenna advised that the Partnership had informed patients registered at RMG of the closure of RMG and the Board’s preferred option for managing this closure by letter and through holding drop-in sessions to provide further information and assurance to patients and stakeholders on the process. She explained that a project group had been established and to date, GP practices in the city had indicated that they could absorb 80% of RMG patients into their practice lists and noted she was hopeful the remaining 20% of patients would be re-allocated before RMG closed in January 2019. Ms McKenna added that the project team continued to engage with First Bus to address transportation issues identified during the consultation and engagement process; as well as pharmacy colleagues to help them prepare for the closure and ensure that patients with repeat prescriptions had enough medication over the transition period.

Thereafter there were questions and comments on (1) the transportation and accessibility issues identified by service users following their re-allocation to new GP surgeries; (2) the challenges of engaging with hard to reach groups or those with complex health needs to ensure they were informed and could cope with re-allocation to a new surgery; (3) Ms McKenna explained that the Partnership had a statutory obligation to ensure that the remaining 20% of RMG patients were assigned to a GP practice by the end of January 2019; and (4) the Chief Finance Officer confirmed that the Partnership had not committed to covering any recurring costs following the re-allocation of RMG patients.

The Board resolved:-

(i)         to agree the recommendations;

(ii)        to instruct the Rosemount Project Team to consider accessibility issues for patients being transferred to new GP practices; and

(iii)       to thank GP practices, First Bus and public sector partners for supporting the Partnership during this challenging time.

(i)         to note that formatting issues within the draft guidelines had been identified and would be resolved prior to formal publication;

(ii)        to approve the Local Guidelines on the Waiving of Charges for Services to Carers;

(iii)       to instruct the Lead Strategy and Performance Manager to prepare an easy-read version of the local guidelines; and

(iv)      to instruct the Lead Strategy and Performance Manager to prepare progress updates on implementation and for these to be reported to the Audit and Performance Systems Committee.

The Board had before it a report by Alison MacLeod (Lead Strategy and Performance Manager, ACHSCP) which presented the Local Guidelines on the Waiving of Charges for Services for approval.

The report recommended:-

That the Board approve the Local Guidelines on the Waiving of Charges for Services to Carers.

Alison MacLeod explained that in response to the Carers (waiving of charges for support) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2018, the Board requested information on how the regulations would be applied locally and advised that the guidelines were a first step in addressing this issue. She added that a national group had been established to analyse case studies and develop best practice on waiving charges for carers and the group would pay cognisance to the 2018 regulations; primary legislation and statutory guidance. Ms MacLeod also provided an overview of the consultation process followed by the Partnership when developing the local guidelines and she particularly highlighted the positive engagement with local and national carer groups.

Thereafter there were questions and comments on (1) the consultation process, with particular reference to engagement with carers; (2) whether an easy-read version of the guidelines should be produced to increase understanding and accessibility; (3) the shared responsibility between the Partnership and Voluntary Service Aberdeen (VSA) for signposting carers to help them access support services; and (4) members agreed that despite the lack of available data, the production of local guidelines was a credible first step.

The Board resolved:-

(i)         to note that formatting issues within the draft guidelines had been identified and would be resolved prior to formal publication;

(ii)        to approve the Local Guidelines on the Waiving of Charges for Services to Carers;

(iii)       to instruct the Lead Strategy and Performance Manager to prepare an easy-read version of the local guidelines; and

(iv)      to instruct the Lead Strategy and Performance Manager to prepare progress updates on implementation and for these to be reported to the Audit and Performance Systems Committee.