Agenda and minutes

There were no declarations of interest made at the meeting.

There were no questions from members of the public present at the meeting.

Minutes of the meeting held on 07^th November 2019 are attached.

The minutes of the meeting held on 07 November 2020 be approved as a correct record.

Point HSC 5 – it was agreed that the report on performance indicators be brought in the next municipal year.

Point HSC 9 – was to be covered on the agenda.

Ms Kearsley, HM Senior Coroner, Manchester North, Mark Dalzell and Jon Hobday, Consultant in Public Health will provide a verbal update at the meeting.

Ms Kearsley, HM Senior Coroner, Manchester North, Mark Dalzell and Jon Hobday Consultant in Public Health provided a presentation on non-invasive post mortems. 

Ms Kearsley stated that Manchester had led the way in this area.  This service can be offered but at a cost of £500 and are not suitable in all cases.  It was also noted that there are a limited number of scanners available and these required specialist radiographers and radiologists, which are limited in number. 

Members of the committee raised questions on literature available to families on non-invasive post mortems, and it was confirmed that there is limited information available due to changing situation with regards the availability of the service.

It was also stated that costs of storage of the deceased while waiting for a non-invasive post mortem to be carried out are not passed on to the families but met by the coroner.

Members of the committee raised questions about the availability and suitability of the service and it was confirmed that although there were around 2,300 requests for non-invasive post mortems each year, around 1,400-1,500 were still subject to a regular post mortem.  Even if non-invasive post mortems were used, the pathologist would still have to carry out an external examination of the body.

It was suggested that a task and finish group be set up following the Motion to Council last April.  However, Ms Kearsley stated a meeting was already arranged in the next few weeks to discuss a business case for non-invasive scanning for Rochdale, Oldham and Bury.

Members of the committee also raised questions on the costs of Muslim and Jewish burials, as these seemed to be higher than in other areas; also the role of councillors out of hours.  Neil Long attended the meeting and stated that systems were in place for burials for every day of the year, so members of the public could contact the Council directly.  The costs charged were only the costs of the vault, the specification of which had been developed in conjunction with the community.

It was agreed:

      That the report be noted.

Warren Heppolette, Executive Lead, Strategy and System Development and Nicky O’Connor, Chief Operating Officer, Health and Social Care Partnership will provide an update at the meeting. Covering report and presentation attached.

Warren Heppolette, Executive Lead, Strategy and System Development and Nicky O’Connor, Chief Operating Officer, Health and Social Care Partnership provided a presentation to members.  The presentation covered issues such as meeting social care delivery at a local level; recognising the important of population health; and reducing smoking.

Members of the committee noted the issues raised with the lack of radiologists and radiographers raised in the previous presentation.  Warren Heppolette agreed to raise this in Greater Manchester.

Questions were also asked about if occupational therapists were a less expensive alternative to nurses.  However, it was confirmed that there was no salary differential and training was very similar.  It was also confirmed that work was done with schools and universities around training and with employers over apprenticeships to attract young people to the workforce.

The Chair thanked Warren Heppolette and Nicky O’Connor, especially for providing the wider Greater Manchester picture.

       It was agreed:

      That the update be noted. 

Nicky Parker, Programme Manager, Urgent Care Review will update at the meeting. Presentation attached.

Dr Jeff Schryer, Bury CCG Chair and Nicky Parker, Programme Manager, Urgent Care Review provided a verbal update and presentation on the Urgent Care Review.

Members of the Committee noted the difficulties with sharing information and patient confidentiality.  It was confirmed that this is something being worked on as it applies across Greater Manchester.

Questions were also asked about online booking of appointments, and it was confirmed that this is a service offered by all practices to patients registered to do so.  The walk-in centre option as part of the consultation was also applauded as it was noted that people often had a perception at least of having to wait a long time for a GP appointment.  Dr Schryer offered to provide some more data on this matter.  The successes of a triage system run by some practices was noted, however, Dr Schryer stated this was not universally provided as all practices operate as businesses and it is up to them to develop their own service delivery models, although he believed all surgeries in Bury did offer this.

              It was agreed:

That the update be noted. 

Julie Gonda, Interim Executive Director, Communities and Wellbeing will report at the meeting. Presentation attached.

Adrian Crook, Assistant Director, Communities and Wellbeing and Julie Gonda, Interim Executive Director Communities and Wellbeing provided an update on the review.

Members of the committee raised a number of questions and it was confirmed that this review would only reduce capacity where the service was currently not fully utilised.  It was also noted that while pressures remained on the service, it was about managing this and balancing service delivery options to be the most effective; for example intermediate care at home was seen as a most beneficial, allowing people to recover faster.  It was also confirmed that the quality of accommodation was also regularly assessed.

It was agreed:

That the update be noted.

Julie Gonda, Interim Executive Director Communities and Wellbeing will provide a verbal update at the meeting.

Julie Gonda, Interim Executive Director Communities and Wellbeing provided an update on the review.  It was confirmed this was the third of three significant reviews being undertaken, especially for learning disabilities and respite services.  The service is provided to a very small customer group, around eighty customers, and so the review will focus on individual needs.

               More detail is expected in the future and a further report will be presented.

               It was agreed:

1.        That the update be noted.

2.        A further update be presented to a future meeting.

Lesley Jones, Director of Public Health, will provide an update at the meeting. Covering report attached.

Lesley Jones, Director of Public Health presented a report on progress on tackling obesity, since the Motion of Notice at Council.  A range of initiatives are currently in place, including the Daily Mile in school and healthy eating.

               Members of the committee noted the positive actions in the report, but also stressed the important of building on the success of things like the London Olympics and promotion of local facilities, such as the Manchester Velodrome.

It was agreed:

That the update be noted.