Agenda item

This briefing paper provides an update on the progress made by the programme team and seeks the Committee’s support and feedback on engaging on the new model of care before launch.

Dr Lyndsey Williams (NW London GP clinical lead for end of life and care homes) and Ian Jones (CLCH) presented the update on the progress made by the programme team since their previous presentation on 25 January 2023. She said the programme team welcomed the Committee’s feedback on engaging on the new model of care before the engagement process was officially launched.

Councillor Amanda Lloyd-Harris commented that the document was much improved from the version presented in January. She said she was glad to see the service was being extended given how it important it was for residents to be able to contact someone out of hours. Dr Williams said she hoped the new model of care put patients and those around them, and those left behind, at the centre.

Keith Mallinson welcomed the report. He noted that he had been on a panel at Trinity Hospice recently looking at end of life provision for the LGBT community. The takeaway was around how to make it more personalised. Dr Williams said the LGBTQ+ community was one of the cohorts that they had engaged with members on, and undertaken literature reviews looking at cultural sensitivities. She said she could share more of the work they had done in that area. Dr Williams said holistic assessment and being aware of cultural sensitivities was part of the underlying principle for the new model of care and said perhaps that needed to be clarified in the engagement documents.

Jim Grealy said he welcomed the extension of hours, he felt it needed to be a 24-hour service to be comprehensive. But he said the report lacked the necessary data to make judgements and felt it was too generalised. Dr Williams said the document presented to the Committee was not the complete model of care document with all the detail and data. The item on the agenda was a progress update on that work. She said it was almost finished and was scheduled to go out for engagement at the end of the month. The initial engagement would be on the ‘what’, not the ‘how’ – which would come later. The goal was to ensure they were identifying any unmet needs. She said the proposed model of care would be published at the end of the month.

Jim Grealy said he was concerned about an engagement exercise over the summer and felt many people would miss out on their chance to provide feedback. Sue Roostan acknowledged that summer was not an ideal time for the engagement and said they would look at extending the engagement period if the response rate was below expectations. Councillor Lloyd-Harris said she thought it was essential to extend the engagement period to the end of September or early October. Sue Roostan said they would consider it.

Dr Nicola Lang (Director of Public Health) discussed how important it was for the service to operate 24-7. Dr Williams said there was a 24-7 advice line and they intended for that to continue and expand to all patients. There was also a visiting element that would run 8am to 8pm. Dr Lang suggested changing the wording in the engagement document to make that clearer.

Merril Hammer said the document needed to be clearer about how the new model of care differed from the old model. She also raised concerns about access to beds for end-of-life care. She also noted the paper made it seem as though HAFSON had supported the process, but the HAFSON representative on the group had reported reservations about the way the process had been carried out.

Dr Williams said they would look at the language around what was new or enhanced. She said she hoped all of the issues raised would be addressed in the final document. Regarding HAFSON’s involvement, she said she would look again at the references in the final document. Dr William’s also encouraged Merril’s HAFSON colleague to contact her to give them an opportunity to provide feedback.

Linda Jackson (Strategic Director of Independent Living) welcomed the update and said it showed the changes asked for by the communities and this group had been incorporated. She then asked at what point there would be a formal consultation on the changes, given it was a significant service change. Sue Roostan said there would be an engagement process on what was required, then when considering how to deliver the service there would be consideration of whether there needed to be a formal consultation.

Keith Mallinson informed the Committee of his experience of the current service. He said the process around his partner’s death had been seamless and he praised the service and the effort the teams put in.

Councillor Coleman asked if the anticipated consultation would be carried out over the Christmas holiday. Sue Roostan said if a consultation was necessary, they would try to avoid another holiday period given the engagement was taking place in summer.

The Chair thanked Dr Williams and colleagues for attending. She noted the Committee’s concern about the engagement period and reiterated the request for an extension. She also noted the points made around the engagement document and the importance of using the right language around cultural sensitivities.