Agenda item

To receive an update from the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) on the delivery of the Health Check programme for people with a learning disability.

The Committee received an update on the delivery of the Health Check programme from the Head of Service (Mental Health & Learning Disabilities) for NHS Dorset CCG.

Members heard that the programme, which is a key feature in the NHS’ Long Term Plan and also features within the local Dorset Learning Disabilities and Autism plan, had been impacted by COVID19 and that there were challenges faced in its delivery.

The Committee heard that 2000 annual healthchecks were completed last year, which accounted for 54% in Dorset and 60% in BCP. Members were told that this was not the level desired by the service but that figures are moving in the right direction.

Conducting healthchecks has been highlighted as a priority within the Phase 3 recovery process across the whole of the NHS. A target of 67% completion rate has been set for end of the current financial year and a further target of 75% is set for the end of long-term plan.

Quarter one, which was the main period affected by COVID19, saw 123 healthchecks conducted, with 73 of these taking place in the BCP area. Priority work had been undertaken for the Phase 3 recovery process and a trajectory to achieve a 67% threshold of completed checks has been set.

Work was also being done closely with GP Practices to increase the number of healthchecks that are completed. Furthermore, within the development of the local Primary Care Networks, several PCNs have highlighted annual healthchecks as a local priority and have added them to their local improvement plans. Several stakeholders have also been engaged, including Healthwatch and the People First Forum, to gain support from primary care and support the programme in delivering its aim.

Members were informed that data was an important part of overseeing annual healthchecks and that the CCG intelligence team had been helping to development this approach alongside a task and finish group which ties in with the local quality improvement plan.

An important factor that was highlighted was continuing to build relationships with different Learning Disability teams within the community and linking in with Public Health Dorset to provide positive steps for service users for healthy living.

Work had been scheduled to build a help platform for GPs to share good practice experiences. Members heard that some practices had different approaches to healthchecks and that it would be beneficial to achieve consistency based on good practice. It was also heard that healthchecks could also be combined with flu vaccinations and that the ongoing principle of encourage people with learning disabilities to access primary care for healthchecks and to use the Yellow Book would continue.

Several questions were asked by members and included whether the projections following Quarter One were too optimistic due to the risk of a second wave. The Head of Service (Mental Health & Learning Disabilities) for NHS Dorset CCG agreed that the projections were optimistic however hard work had and would continue to be undertaken to achieve these figures. Contextual information was provided on how, historically, different Quarters saw different numbers of healthchecks conducted and that efforts were currently being made to balance these variations out and achieve more consistency. Further information was given on contingency planning and it was heard that it would be difficult to make contingency plans due to the risk COVID19 presents to the learning disabilities cohort. National guidance had prompted virtual healthchecks to be explored for this purpose, and discussions with colleagues across South West have been held. The key priority for the service areas was to ensure that the cohort would not be put at any further risk, which includes the provision of full PPE and assessments on whether those at highest risk get healthchecks first.

A question was raised on whether mobile units, similar to test centres, could be created to conduct healthchecks. The Committee heard that this was not something considered previously and that instead, where possible, the service would take practitioners to care home or home visits. This approach was being assessed by the task and finish groups on best practice. The Director of Primary and Community Care of NHS Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group expressed that they would feed this suggestion into the task and finish group and that the desirable aim would be to offer a menu of options and reduce the medicalised feel of healthchecks in order to best adapt them for all people with learning disabilities.

RESOLVED that the Committee agreed to note the content of the report as per the recommendation.