Agenda item
Better Care Fund - Report for Q4 2018/19 and Update on planning for 19/20
To consider a report by the Executive Director for People - Adults, Dorset Council.
Minutes:
The Board considered
a report by the Executive Director for People - Adults, Dorset Council, which
set out the performance of the previous Dorset Health and Wellbeing Board area against
the 2018/19 Better Care Fund (BCF) Plan and provided an update on planning for
2019/20 although final detailed national policy requirements had not yet been
published.
Significant progress
had been made last year in a number of areas - development of a joint brokerage
function, alignment of budgets, joint quality approaches, successful
implementation of two joint frameworks with a spend of approximately £650m over
five years and joint provider market management. Plans for an integrated approach to place
shaping had also been progressed but further integration of commissioning
functions and the pooling of budgets had provided more of a challenge. For 2019/20 there were opportunities to take
forward integration through the refresh of the Integrated Care System and the
Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP).
In summary, although improvements had been made in all areas targets had
not been met and work needed to continue to improve performance.
With regard to
whether performance was going in the right direction, it was explained that
performance fluctuated over the year and final end of year figures are not yet
available.. Once they are it would be possible to compare Dorset's
performance to that of other areas and see whether Dorset mirrored national
trends.
As the timetable for
completion of the BCF plan 2019/20 does not fit with Board meetings, a
delegation was sought to sign off the BCF plan outside of Board meetings. The Chairman added that, because of the
funding involved, she had previously consulted the appropriate Cabinet member
as part of the signing off process and intended to do the same this year.
The Chief Operating
Officer of the Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group welcomed improved
performance with regard to delayed transfers of care. The investment in primary care had improved
patient flow, but peaks created pressure in the system and every part of the
health and care system had a part to play in trying to prevent pressure
building.
Members noted that
work was continuing to prevent people being admitted to hospital in the first
place, one of the key aspects being housing and the need for more suitable
housing to be provided in order to prevent hospital admissions. Partners had a role to play in this.
There was a brief
discussion about the need to be able to measure levels of activity and ongoing
work in primary care was noted. The
refresh of the STP also provided an opportunity to develop outcome measures
beyond the BCF metrics.
Resolved
1. That authority is delegated by the Health
and Wellbeing Board to the Chair of the Board and the Executive Director for
People - Adults to agree Dorset's 19/20 Better Care Fund plan update. This is in order to ensure plans can be
submitted in line with the national timetable if the deadlines, once published,
do not align with scheduled Health and Wellbeing Board meetings.
2. Members of the Health and Wellbeing Board
will be briefed in between scheduled Board meetings if the delegation needs to
be used.
3. The work to update the 19/20 plan should
include refreshing the associated risks in the new Dorset Council's corporate
risk register.
Supporting documents: