Agenda, decisions and minutes

The agenda, reports and meeting recording associated with this minute can be found here.

Please note that if any changes are made to this minute at the point of approval, these will be outlined in the subsequent minute and this document will not be retrospectively altered.

The Chair welcomed everybody to the meeting and intimated this was her first full meeting since being appointed as Chair.

Members were advised that given the volume of reports to be presented, there would be a break in proceedings at a convenient point around 11.30am.

Members heard that Article 17 - Vaccinations - HSCP.21.061, and Article 21 - Community Nursing Digitalisation - HSCP.21.069 were submitted late, as was anticipated.

The Chair resolved :-

in terms of Section 12(2) of the Standing Orders to accept these reports as  matters of urgency.

Members were requested to intimate any declarations of interest in respect of the items on today’s agenda.

There were no declarations.

The Chair indicated that Article 20, Supplementary Procurement Plan 2020/2021 - HSCP.21.045 and Article 21, Community Nursing Digitalisation - HSCP.21.069 were Exempt Reports and would be heard in private.

The Board resolved :-

in terms of Section 50(A)(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, to exclude the press and public from the meeting during consideration of the above item so as to avoid disclosure of information of the classes described in  paragraphs 6 and 9 of Schedule 7(A) to the Act.

The Board had before it the minute of its meeting of 23 March 2021.

The Board resolved :-

to approve the minute as a correct record.

The Board had before it the minute of its previous meeting.

The Board resolved :-

to approve the minute as a correct record.

The Board had before it the draft minutes of the recent meeting of the CCGC.

Members heard a summary from the Chair, CCGC who highlighted that Article 12 on the agenda had escalated a matter to the IJB which had resulted in Article 12 of this IJB - Vaccinations - HSCP.21.061.

Members were advised of  Article 13 Valedictory following Graham Gauld’s retirement.

The Board resolved :-

(i)            to note the draft minutes; and

(ii)          to acknowledge Article 13 – Valedictory in respect of Graham Gauld’s retirement, and to add the Board’s appreciation to the remarks already made.

The Board had before it the minute of the recent meeting of the RAPC.

Members were advised by the Chair, RAPC that a considerable volume of reports had been presented which had provided appropriate assurance to the Committee.

The Chair, RAPC gave recognition to officers who managed to maintain service delivery during the pandemic.

The Board resolved :-

to note the minute.

The Board had before it the Buisness Planner which was presented by the Chief Finance Officer.

Members heard of of the updates to reporting intentions and that further items would be added to future reporting cycles.

The Board resolved :-

to note the business planner.

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which presented an update on highlighted topics.

Members heard an overview of the report which included reference to the IJB Annual Report due in August 2021, to a potential meeting date in early June 2021 to discuss accounts and to the receipt of positive feedback around some of the ACHSCP activities.

Members were advised of regional and national updates which impacted on the work of the Partnership.

The Chief Finance Officer provided explanation around the ACHSCP Accounts and assured the Board that these would be presented to Members when completed.

The report recommended :-

that the Board note the content of the report.

The Board resolved :-

(i)            to approve the recommendation;

(ii)          to instruct the Chief Officer, ACHSCP to circulate the Finance Report to be presented to RAPC in June 2021 to the next IJB thereafter; and

(iii)         to instruct the Chief Officer, ACHSCP to present an updated report on Portfolio Management to a future IJB.

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which sought to modify membership of the Aberdeen City Integration Joint Board (IJB) and to appoint the Vice-Chair of the Board and the Chair of the Clinical and Care Governance Committee (CCGC).

Members heard from the Clerk on the amended nominations of membership to the IJB received from one of the constituent authorities, Aberdeen City Council, following Councillor Duncan’s departure from IJB business.

Members heard that whilst recommendation (e) sought a report on 31 March 2023, this report could be accelerated following the results from the proposed Local Government Elections on 5 May 2022.

The report recommended :-

that the Board –

a)            endorse the nomination of membership to the Integration Joint Board as proposed by Aberdeen City Council (ACC) at paragraph 3.2 of this report for the period from 28 May 2021 to 31 March 2023;

b)            endorse the appointment of the Vice-Chair as proposed at paragraph 3.4 of this report for the period to 31 March 2023;

c)            endorse the appointment of Councillor Sandra Macdonald as the Chair of the Clinical and Care Governance Committee (CCGC) from 28 May 2021 to 31 March 2023;

d)            agree to suspend Standing Order 15(4) to allow Councillor Lesley Dunbar to Chair the meeting of CCGC on 1 June 2021;  and

e)            to instruct the Chief Officer, ACHSCP to reconsider these arrangements by report to the IJB prior to 31 March 2023

The Board resolved :-

(i)            to approve the recommendations; and

(ii)          to record the appreciation of the Board for the many years of service given by Councillor Duncan.

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which shared the Aberdeen Adult Protection Committee (APC) Convener’s Biennial Report for 2018-20, as published, with the Integration Joint Board (IJB), as found at Appendix A to the report.

Members heard from the Lead for Social Work, ACHSCP who provided an overview of the APC and its reporting obligations and advised the report had been shared to both Risk Audit and Performance Committee (RAPC) and the Clinical Care Governance Committee (CCGC).

Members were advised that it was intended to present an Annual APC Report effective from 2022.

The Lead for Social Work highlighted the impact that the pandemic had on ‘hidden harm’ which would be reported to a future CCGC.

Members heard that statutory responsibility for the APC was with the Chief Officer’s Group, comprised of senior members of ACHSCP, Aberdeen City Council, NHS Grampian and Police Scotland which provided a further level of assurance to the Board of scrutiny around the operation of APC, its Independent Chair and the relevant data generated within that environment.

The reported recommended :-

that the Board note the information contained within the report

The Board resolved :-

to approve the recommendation.

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which presented its Strategic Risk Register, as part of the IJB’s 6 monthly consideration and review of its strategic risks.

The report also presented the decisions from the Risk, Audit and Performance Committee (RAPC) of 27 April 2021 with regards to report HSCP.21.043 - Strategic Risks.

Members heard from the Business Manager who provide an overview of the report and explanation of the RAPC directions.

Explanation was provided to Members regarding Risk 2 – IJB Financial Failure following a question. It was agreed to review this risk (specifically the risk rating) which would be appropriate following  the publication of the financial monitoring report for Quarter 1 of 2021/22 when there was the probability of reduction in that risk following completion of the 2020/2021 Annual Accounts.

Members were reminded of the intention to hold a Risk Workshop around October 2021 when greater explanation, description and update of the Risks could be carried out.

The report recommended :-

that the Board –

a)            note Appendix A, the current position of the Strategic Risk Register;

b)            approve Appendix A, the proposed addition to the Strategic Risk Register relating to the Integration Joint Board’s duties under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 as endorsed by the Risk, Audit and Performance Committee at its meeting on 27 April 2021;

c)            approve the removal of Risk 10 (European Union Exit) from the Strategic Risk Register, as endorsed by the Risk, Audit and Performance Committee at its meeting on 27 April 2021; noting that any workforce risks arising from the EU Exit will be captured within Risk 9 (Workforce); and

d)            note that a review of Risk 3 (Hosted Services) will be presented to the September 2021 meeting of the Risk, Audit and Performance Committee; as supported at its Committee on 27 April 2021.

The Board resolved :-

(i)            to note the current position of the Strategic Risk Register at Appendix A, and approve the proposed addition to the Strategic Risk Register relating to the Integration Joint Board’s duties under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 as endorsed by the Risk, Audit and Performance Committee at its meeting on 27 April 2021;

(ii)          to approve the removal of Risk 10 (European Union Exit) from the Strategic Risk Register, as endorsed by the Risk, Audit and Performance Committee at its meeting on 27 April 2021; noting that any workforce risks arising from the EU Exit will be captured within Risk 9 (Workforce); and

(iii)         to note that a review of Risk 3 (Hosted Services) will be presented to the September 2021 meeting of the Risk, Audit and Performance Committee; as supported at its Committee on 27 April 2021.

The Board had before it the reprt from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which presented an update on progress against the existing Equality Outcomes 2018 – 2020 and the proposed Equality Outcomes and Mainstreaming Framework for 2021-2025 for approval, along with the evidence which supported the development of the framework.

Members were advised that a revised approach to undertaking Equality Impact Assessments in Aberdeen City Health and Social Care Partnership (ACHSCP) was also proposed along with a consequential change to the IJB and Committee report template.

Members heard from the Lead Strategy and Performance Manager who introduced colleagues from Scottish Care who had assisted development of the report and the Framework. 

Members were reminded of the legal obligations on the Board and of Scottish Government guidelines and requirements.

Members heard that a multi-agency partnership existed to develop the equalities requirements which were subject to regular scrutiny to best enable an Equality environment.

The report recommended :-

that the Board –

a)            note the progress made on the existing Equality Outcomes (Appendix A);

b)            approve the proposed Equality Outcomes and Mainstreaming Framework 2021-25 (Appendix C) and reporting schedule as described in paragraph 3.16;

c)            approve the revised approach to undertaking Health Inequality Impact Assessments (Appendix D); and

d)            approve the consequential amendment to the IJB and Committee report templates to replace both the Equalities and Fairer Scotland Duty sections under Implications with a single section entitled ‘Equalities, Fairer Scotland and Health Inequality’ and that the Health Inequalities Impact Assessments will be published on the ACHSCP Website

The Board resolved :-

(i)            to approve the recommendations; and

(ii)          to instruct the Chief Officer, ACHSCP to submit 6-monthly reports alternately to the RAPC and IJB.

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which provided an update to the Integration Joint Board on the implementation of the Aberdeen City Autism Strategy and Action Plan 2019-2022.

Members heard from the Lead for Community Mental Health, Learning Disabilities & Substance Misuse Services who highlighted the partnership approach to preparation and delivery of the plan which had been delayed from October 2020 due to the pandemic.

Members were advised that during the period of delay, it had been possible to apply some momentum to the service which was now in a stronger position than anticipated.  It was further anticipated that national developments around autism would see further positive developments in better service provision which would be reported as appropriate.

Members acknowledged the developments against the background of the pandemic and wished to record their appreciation to all staff involved in this success.

The report recommended :-

that the Board –

a)            note the report and the information on progress against the action plan as presented in Appendix A; and

b)            note that an interim update report will be provided to Clinical and Care Governance Committee in November 2021

The Board resolved :-

(i)            to approve the recommendations; and

(ii)          to record appreciation to the team for moving forward with the Action Plan during the challenging pandemic.

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which highlighted the lessons learned during the last 14 months of responding to the Covid 19 pandemic and how these lessons would feed into future planning.

Members heard from the Lead Strategy and Performance Manager who provided context and further explanation around the report.

Members heard of the impact on staff well-being during the response and of further arrangements being considered to better capture and manage effects in that area.

Members were advised of the many competing and sometimes new challenges to service delivery across health care which was often further complicated by government or health direction in certain areas of provision.

Members agreed that further reporting and scrutiny on implementation of the lessons learned was essential on the role of the Board to provide oversight and strategic direction.

The report recommended :-

that the Board –

a)            note the content of the report and the ongoing activity; and

b)            instruct the Chief Officer to provide an update on progress on embedding these lessons to the Clinical and Care Governance Committee.

The Board resolved :-

(i)            to note the content of the report and the ongoing activity;

(ii)          to instruct the Chief Officer, ACHSCP to consider how best to present updates on progress within appropriate timelines to the IJB on the discussed themes of Digital, Public Engagement, Long Covid and Self-Management ; 

(iii)         to instruct the Chief Officer to ensure all  ‘lessons learned’  are included in the strategic planning for AHSCP’s new strategy; and

(iv)         to instruct the Chief Officer to include a brief update on staff wellbeing at every IJB during 2021 whether within the CO’s or separate report.

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer ACHSCP which presented the annual update on the action plan submitted to the Board on 21 January 2020, which was delayed from presentation to the Board as previously requested due to the response to the pandemic.

Members heard that whilst the focus remained on 0 stigma and 0 deaths arising from hiv, the previous 14 months had delivered some testing regime challenges due to the pandemic.

Members heard of the continuing public engagement to introduce change to behaviours and attitudes which interacted with other health challenges and included work within areas of deprivation.

Members complimented the Fast Track Cities on their focus and achievements during the challenging pandemic.

The report recommended :-

that the Board -

a)            consider the Fast Track High Level Plan at Appendix A and note the progress on the action plan; and

b)            endorse the proposed actions for 2021/22, noting that the action plan is a live document, and to instruct the Chief Officer to provide an update on progress to the IJB on 29 March 2022

The Board resolved :-

(i)            to approve the recommendations; and

(ii)          to commend the Fast Track Cities team for maintaining focus and achieving targets during the pandemic.

The Board had before it the report from the Director of Public Health, NHS Grampian which provided an update on the progress of the delivery of Covid-19 Vaccination programme within Aberdeen City, in response to the questions raised by the Clinical, Care and Governance Committee.

Members heard from the Director of Public Health that there were many challenges to the delivery of the vaccination programme which included but was not limited to topics such as low take-up, misinformation, public confidence, geography, social deprivation, transient population and lack of understanding.

Notwithstanding, some 185,000 vaccinations had been delivered and take up was often between 98.5% and 100% of the cohorts invited.

Members heard of the vast range of support and activity that had been carried out to maximise take up of the available vaccines which included tried and tested methods together with examples of innovation which continued to be developed.

Vaccine hesitancy had been identified and activities to reduce this continued within the community, including assistance from faith leaders, BAME community leaders and involved use of social media.

The report recommended:-

that the Board –

a)            note the update provided by the Director of Public Health, NHS Grampian on the delivery of the Covid-19 Vaccination programme in Appendix A.;

b)            note the action plan in Appendix B which details locality based activity to address the cold spots in vaccine uptake.

c)            request that IJB members continue to support the programme by raising awareness of the importance of the covid-19 vaccinations to protect the health of our population and support opening up the economy. This can be carried out by sharing key messages from the weekly programme updates with relevant networks; and

d)            Instruct officers to provide an update to the next IJB meeting on progress in improving uptake in areas identified.

The Board resolved :-

(i)            to note the update provided by the Director of Public Health, NHS Grampian on the delivery of the Covid-19 Vaccination programme in Appendix A;

(ii)          to commend the action plan in Appendix B which details locality based activity to address the cold spots in vaccine uptake;

(iii)         to  support the request that IJB members continue to support the programme by raising awareness of the importance of the covid-19 vaccinations to protect the health of our population and support opening up the economy by sharing key messages from the weekly programme updates with relevant networks;

(iv)         to instruct the Chief Officer, ACHSCP to provide an update to the next IJB meeting on progress in improving uptake in areas identified; and

(v)          to record appreciation of the high volume of delivery of the vaccine during pandemic conditions.

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which provided an update on progress with the implementation of the revised model for the provision of day care and day opportunities within  Aberdeen City, now known as “Stay Well, Stay Connected (SWSC)”.

Members heard from the Lead Commissioner, ACHSCP who provided a summary of the report.

The report recommended :-

that the Board -

a)            note the progress on implementation of the day care and day opportunities model now known as “Stay Well, Stay Connected”; and

b)            instruct the Chief Officer, ACHSCP to present a further update report on 15 December 2021.

The Board resolved :-

to approve the recommendations.

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which presented a supplementary 2021/2022 procurement work plan for expenditure on social care services, together with the associated procurement business case, for approval.

The Chair reminded Members that this was a public report however was related to Article 20 of the same title, which contained Exempt information and that Members could decide to refrain from decision until entering private business if they so desired.

Members heard from the Strategic Procurement Manager who outlined the plan and its costs which had been previously presented to the Board.

Members were content to make their decision based on the information contained within the report.

The report recommended :-

that the Board –

a)            approve the expenditure for social care services as set out in the annual work plan at Appendix A;

b)            approve the tendering exercise and subsequent award of a contract as set out in the procurement business case, at Appendix B, and

c)            make the Direction, as attached at Appendix C, and instruct the Chief Officer to issue the Direction to Aberdeen City Council.

The Board resolved :-

to approve the recommendations.

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which presented a supplementary 2021/2022 procurement work plan for expenditure on social care services, together with the associated procurement business case, and included exempt information for approval.

The Chair reminded Members that this had been discussed at Article 19 and Members were content to make their recommendations on the information available to them.

The Board resolved :-

to not require consideration of this report having resolved to make their decision at Article 19 – Supplementary Procurement Plan – HSCP.21.045

The Board had before it the report from the Chief Officer, ACHSCP which outlined the current digital landscape in the Community Nursing Service and made a recommendation for the procurement of a digital solution to support the modernisation of the delivery of Community Nursing Services.

The report recommended :-

that the Board –

a)            approve the immediate procurement of an enterprise license, associated hardware and project support in order to allow for the implementation of Morse across the Community Nursing Service; and

b)            make the Direction outlined in Appendix B and instruct the Chief Officer, ACHSCP to issue the Direction to the Chief Executive, NHS Grampian.

The Board resolved :-

(i)            to approve the recommendations; and

(ii)          to instruct the Chief Officer, ACHSCP to present an evaluation report on implementation of the project to include outcomes within 1 year.

– LUAN GRUGEON, Chair