northlincs.gov.uk

Chairman:  Cllr Mumby-Croft
Venue:  Function Room 2, Civic Centre, Ashby Road, Scunthorpe
Time:  2 p.m.

AGENDA 

1.       Substitutions.
2.       Declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests and personal or personal and prejudicial interests and declarations of whipping arrangements (if any).
3.       Public speaking requests (if any)
4.       GP Referrals

(i)          Discussion with senior NHS representatives
(ii)         Next stages

5.       Added Item (if any).
6.       Any other items which the Chairman decides are urgent by reason of special circumstances which must be specified.

MINUTES

PRESENT:-    Councillor Mumby-Croft in the Chair.

Councillors Armiger, Kataria, Kirk and Ogg.

Councillors Bainbridge, Briggs, L Foster, Glover, Longcake, Marper, Poole, C Sherwood, Waltham and Wells also attended the meeting in accordance with Procedure Rule 1.37 (b).

The panel met at the Civic Centre, Ashby Road, Scunthorpe.

392     DECLARATIONS OF DISCLOSABLE PECUNIARY INTERESTS AND PERSONAL OR PERSONAL AND PREJUDICIAL INTERESTS AND DECLARATIONS OF WHIPPING ARRANGEMENTS (IF ANY) – Cllr Ogg declared an interest as he had a family member working for Northern Lincolnshire & Goole NHS Foundation Trust.  Cllr Kirk declared a personal interest as a patient of the Ancora Medical Practice.

No whip was declared.

393     PUBLIC REQUESTS TO SPEAK – There were no requests received.

394      GP REFERRALS – The Chairman welcomed Richard Sunley, Interim Chief Executive, and Jackie France, Assistant Chief Operating Officer – Patient Access, Northern Lincolnshire & Goole NHS Foundation Trust, and Liane Langdon, Chief Officer, Dr Robert Jaggs-Fowler, Medical Director, and Dr Julie Killingbeck, Head of Primary Care, North Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group, to the meeting.

The Chairman explained that the witnesses had been required to attend a special meeting of the panel to address concerns around a number of referrals from GPs to Northern Lincolnshire & Goole NHS Foundation Trust.  The Chairman invited the Trust representatives to give some background to the issue, how the issue had been identified, and actions that had been taken to address the situation.  This was provided by Richard and Jackie, with input from CCG representatives.  Members queried why progress appeared to be slow, and also why there had been a decision taken not to encourage the public to come forward if they suspected that their referral had been lost.  The Chairman led a a comprehensive discussion on the issue, including exploring issues such as the proposed data-matching exercise, the outcome for patients who had subsequently come to light, clinical review, and whether the Trust had met its Duty of Candour requirements and if the Interim Chief Executive wished to apologise to local residents.  Richard confirmed that he did wish to apologise, on behalf of the whole Trust.

The Chairman then invited questions from other elected members who were present in accordance with Procedure Rule 1.37 (b).  Members asked questions on issues such as timelines in dealing with members of the public who came forward, the practical issues around staffing the contact telephone centre, and the involvement and views of North Lincolnshire CCG.

The Chairman concluded the meeting by stating that the panel were not assured that the issue was handled well, or in a timely fashion, that the previous administration of referrals was not robust or safe enough, that there were no assurances available that patients had not come to harm, and that the plan for progressing this issue was viable.

Resolved – (a)  That Richard Sunley, Jackie France, Liane Langdon, Dr Robert Jaggs-Fowler and Dr Julie Killingbeck be thanked for their attendance and for providing an update on actions to address the panel’s recommendations, (b) that figures on contacts by the public to the dedicated telephone line, including outcomes, be passed to the panel on a daily basis until a date to be determined, and (c) that senior representatives from Northern Lincolnshire & Goole Hospitals NHS Trust and North Lincolnshire CCG be required to provide a further update to the panel on a date to be determined.

395     ADDED ITEM – There was no added item for consideration at the meeting.