Redesign Of Health Services In West Caithness
9th December 2011
Around 50 people this week attended an open drop-in event on the redesign of health services in West Caithness.
NHS Highland is currently re-evaluating a number of possible options for changes to health services in West Caithness, including changes to some services which are delivered on the Dunbar Hospital site, as well services provided in the community.
The open event, which was held at the Pentland Hotel in Thurso on Tuesday December 6, ran from 4 pm to 7pm. The aim was to provide a further opportunity for local people to be involved in providing further comments and preferences around some of the options.
Pauline Craw, Locality General Manager for Caithness, said: "We were pleased that so many people attended this event, despite the bad weather, and that they were able to discuss their concerns with NHS Highland staff and managers.
"We heard that, while local people support many of the proposed changes, some people are still concerned about the option to close the 12 inpatient beds at the hospital and particularly about the provision of palliative care."
One local person, who attended the open event, said they had found it both helpful and welcoming and added that there had been a good exchange of views. While others expressed some concerns about the timing of the event, which they said was not ideal for some people.
Mrs Craw added that NHS Highland had received a petition from local people headed up 'Save the Dunbar' prior to the open event.
She said: "We have read all the comments and we are grateful to local people for taking the time to inform us of their concerns. We summarised the feedback and included this as part of the information presented at the open event. We hope we have been able to address most of the outstanding concerns at this event.
"We agree with the headline of the petition - Save the Dunbar. We want to revitalise the site as a modern centre for delivering the highest quality health and social care, bringing more services to people closer to where they live. This includes reducing the need for inpatient treatment whenever possible."
Information was provided on all the options that have been developed so far and on the outcome of additional work that had been requested by the North Highland Community Health Partnership (CHP) Governance Committee.
The five issues on which the governance committee requested some further detailed work are:
• Reconsider palliative and end of life care to provide inpatient access in Thurso
• Greater clarity around the use of the Dunbar site
• Assess impact of proposed changes on the Scottish Ambulance Service
• An analysis of the socio-economic impact, including transport
• The impact of the redesign on staff
Those attending the open event were given the opportunity to provide feedback on all the options and to suggest any further options. The feedback, together with the findings from the petition, will be written up and included as part of the additional evidence to be fed into an extraordinary meeting of the North Highland CHP Governance Committee.
This meeting has been arranged specifically to discuss the West Caithness redesign proposals and will be held in public at the Weigh Inn, Thurso, on Tuesday December 20 at 2pm.
The governance committee will take a view on the proposals for the redesign of services in West Caithness at this meeting, if it feels it is in a position to do so. This will include whether it feels it has sufficient information on the five issues it raised, whether there has been sufficient communication and engagement with stakeholders and whether there is understanding about the implications of each of the options.
When the committee has taken a view, the process will go forward to the NHS Highland Board without prejudice. The Cabinet Secretary will then decide whether she wishes to call this matter in.
Mrs Craw said: "We will set up a local implementation group to oversee any redesign. This will include producing, publishing and consulting on a local communications and engagement plan. And we will be guided by the local community about how they would like to be informed and involved about future discussions on any redesign.
"We will also work with local partners to identify opportunities to locate some Highland wide support services in the Caithness area where possible.
"We have produced information packs on West Caithness Redesign, summarising current services and the various options being considered. This information will be available on our website."
North Highland CHP Governance Committee Chair, Colin Punler, said: I'm sure members will welcome the additional work being done to engage with the public, since it was apparent at our meeting in August that more people wanted to be more involved in the ongoing work to develop the best option for the health needs of the area."
Anyone wishing to suggest ideas for improving communications and engagement, or who would like a copy the information pack, should contact Maimie Thompson, Head of Public Relations and Engagement, on 01463 70 4722 or by email at maimie.thompson[AT]nhs.net or Locality General Manager, Pauline Craw, on 01955 880349 or by email at pauline.craw[AT]nhs.net.
And anyone who wishes to submit evidence to the CHP governance committee for consideration at its meeting on December 20 should contact North Highland CHP Support Manager, Kay Oswald, on 01955 880246 or by email at kay.oswald[AT]nhs.net by December 13.
