Health and Social Care Update - March 2021

The growing impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) is having an unprecedented generational impact on the health and wellbeing of society across the UK and around the world. The impact is being felt in our everyday lives and is now having far reaching consequences for everyone. If you or your organisation needs advice relating to Coronavirus, Bevan Brittan has set up a COVID-19 Advisory Service which draws upon the expertise of a range of Bevan Brittan legal and regulatory teams. Please feel free to contact us.

Bevan Brittan provides high quality, comprehensive advice to the NHS, independent healthcare sector and local authorities. This update contains brief details of recent Government publications, legislation, cases and other developments relevant to those involved in health and social care work, both in the NHS, independent sector and local authorities which have been published in the last month. 

If someone forwarded you this email you can sign up for your own free copy here delivered directly to your inbox.  

Training Events	Inquests
Acute and emergency care	Mental Health
Children/young people	Primary Care
Clinical Risk/Patient Safety	Providers
Commissioning	Public Health
Digital Health	Regulation
Employment/HR	Social Care
Finance	General

 

If someone forwarded you this email you can sign up for your own free copy here delivered directly to your inbox.   

Bevan Brittan Free Training Events 

Clinical Risk Webinars
Bevan Brittan Clinical Risk/Health, Care and Regulatory Law Team Training - These are internal hour long lunch time training sessions.  You can sign up to watch the training sessions remotely via our webinar facility. Please contact Claire Bentley.

Please note that registration for each webinar will close when the webinar starts, so please do ensure you have booked your place in advance to guarantee your attendance

Clinical Risk

Tissue viability, wound management and falls/ Diabetes in primary care - 20 April 2021 12.30pm - 1.30pm

Eye surgery in the private and NHS setting - 4 May 2021 12.30pm - 1.30pm

Coronavirus

The growing impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) is having an unprecedented generational impact on the health and wellbeing of society across the UK and around the world. The impact is being felt in our everyday lives and is now having far reaching consequences for everyone. If you or your organisation needs advice relating to Coronavirus, Bevan Brittan has set up a COVID-19 Advisory Service which draws upon the expertise of a range of Bevan Brittan legal and regulatory teams. Please feel free to contact us.

Back to top

Acute and emergency care

Publications/Guidance

Provider collaboration review: Urgent and emergency care. This review looked at urgent and emergency care (UEC) in 8 areas of England in October 2020.

Covid-19 insight: winter pressures for urgent and emergency care This briefing looks at the evidence so far about how health and care services have been affected by the pandemic during this winter, and discuss what action the CQC is taking to provide constructive support.

If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around acute and emergency issues please contact Claire Bentley.

Back to top

Children and young people 

Publications/Guidance 

Engaging with and meeting children. CAFCASS guidance outlines the arrangements that are being made for Family Court Advisers (FCAs) to see children and families, work in CAFCASS offices and attend court in recognition of the changing circumstances surrounding COVID-19.

News

Parents of transgender children retain the right to consent to treatment with puberty blockers. In the case of a 15-year-old who was born a boy but lives as a girl, Lieven J at the High Court has ruled that parents of transgender children retain the right to consent to treatment with puberty blockers on their child's behalf without a court's approval. It follows a case in December 2020 which decided children cannot properly consent to the treatment.

How we can help

We can assist in relation to the statutory responsibilities for children under the Coronavirus Act 2020 including decisions around:-

• commissioning and the provision of healthcare and social care;
• isolation and duties toward children in the care and those classed as vulnerable under the Coronavirus ( COVID19 );
• guidance on vulnerable children and young people;
• the delivery of EHCP plans; 
• safeguarding; and,
• all aspects of educational provision including for key workers.

If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around children please contact Deborah Jeremiah.

Back to top 

Clinical Risk / Patient Safety

Publications/Guidance 

“Screening incidents: thinking differently.” Suzette Woodward, an international expert on patient safety advising PHE on its review of the screening incident guidance, sets out her thoughts on how learning from safety incidents could be strengthened.

Independent Sector Pilot. GIRFT review of Orthopaedics and Spines. The NHS’ Getting it Right First Time (GIRFT) programme have published their first ever review looking at independent healthcare services. GIRFT – an NHS programme designed to improve the quality of care within the NHS by reducing unwarranted variations – looked into orthopaedics and spinal services in a number of Independent Sector acute care providers including Horder Healthcare, Nuffield Health, Spire Healthcare and Practice Plus, visiting 63 hospitals in total as part of their review published this month.

The APPG on Cerebral Palsy’s first report Early identification, intervention and pathways of care of infants and young children with cerebral palsy: The case for reform and investment.

Saving and improving lives: the future of UK clinical research delivery This policy document outlines the government's vision to unleash the full potential of clinical research delivery to tackle health inequalities, bolster economic recovery and improve the lives of people across the UK.

Rapid evaluation of health and care services: planning a sustainable solution for the post-Covid reset In the first wave of Covid-19, health and care services innovated and adapted at unprecedented speed to provide care and protect staff and patients during a rapidly developing global pandemic. This paper explores the barriers and facilitators to performing timely, rigorous and effective evaluations of these changes.

RCN independent review of guidelines for the prevention and control of Covid-19 in health care settings in the United Kingdom: evaluation and messages for future infection-related emergency planning This report of an independent review finds that the government’s Covid-19 infection control guidelines, which are used across the UK, are in need of updating. It calls for all NHS staff to be given a higher level of personal protective equipment as a precautionary measure pending the outcome of a review.

Building back elective care: a new framework for recovery This report warns that the NHS in England could face a hidden waiting list of nearly 6 million people who have not come forward or been referred for treatment yet due to the significant disruption brought about by the pandemic. It explores what lies ahead for the health service and patients, based on the NHS Confederation's modelling of referral-to-treatment waiting trajectories in 2021. It offers an outline policy framework for starting to reduce waiting lists in an effective, equitable and efficient way.

Cancer won't wait: building resilience in cancer screening and diagnostics in Europe based on lessons from the pandemic The ongoing impact of Covid-19 on health services across Europe has in most cases led to significant reductions in cancer screening, testing and diagnosis. Responses in individual countries have differed, but there are common challenges in all countries. This report highlights some of the approaches already being taken, as well as suggestions for what should be done going forward. It considers different stakeholders – from local pharmacies to national and international organisations – and their roles, as well as multi-stakeholder collaboration and co-operation. Please note that free registration is required to access this report.

Maternal mental health during a pandemic: a rapid evidence review of Covid-19's impact This rapid evidence review (produced together with the Maternal Mental Health Alliance) looks at the impact of Covid-19 on the mental health of new and expectant mothers and the support that’s been available during the pandemic.  

NHS Operational Planning and Contracting Guidance. The 2021/22 priorities and operational planning guidance sets the priorities for the year ahead, against a backdrop of the challenge to restore services, meet new care demands and reduce the care back logs that are a direct consequence of the pandemic, whilst supporting staff recovery and taking further steps to address inequalities in access, experience and outcomes.

RCN independent review of guidelines for the prevention and control of Covid-19 in health care settings in the United Kingdom: evaluation and messages for future infection-related emergency planning This report of an independent review finds that the government’s Covid-19 infection control guidelines, which are used across the UK, are in need of updating. It calls for all NHS staff to be given a higher level of personal protective equipment as a precautionary measure pending the outcome of a review.

Cases

RAJAHMONEY v HARRISON (2021) The court refused a defendant's application to vacate a trial date on the basis that he had suffered a stroke. The clinical negligence claim related to matters in 2014 and there was very real prejudice to the claimant if there was further delay. The issue in dispute turned on expert evidence and the factual issues had been addressed by the defendant in his witness statement.

BG v LANCASHIRE TEACHING HOSPITALS (2021) A trial on quantum in a clinical negligence claim was adjourned where the claimant had had to instruct new solicitors and there was a high risk that if the trial date was maintained the tight timetable proposed would prove to be unrealistic.

WILLMOTT v ROYAL BERKSHIRE NHS FOUNDATION TRUST (2021) A claimant was refused an extension of time and permission to appeal against a wasted costs order granted in favour of an NHS trust following the discontinuance of her claim against it where there had been no explanation for the delay in appealing, and any error in calculating the amount was minimal.

News/articles

Woman jailed for wildly exaggerated clinical negligence claim. A woman who duped her lawyers as she wildly overstated a clinical negligence claim, seeking damages of £5.7 million instead of the £350,000 her case was worth, has been sentenced to six months for contempt of court. Mr Justice Griffith acknowledged she had a genuine claim valued at £350,000 because of Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust's failure to diagnose a rare spinal condition, but dismissed her assertion that she sought the extra money for her future care needs. He added that her exaggeration of her physical disabilities and infirmities amounted at times to "outright invention".

Supporting women injured by mesh. Subject to the outcome of the Scottish Parliament election, new legislation will be introduced to allow the Scottish Government to meet the travel, medical and other reasonable expenses of those who had mesh removal surgery outwith NHS Scotland.

Relatives issue legal threat to force inquiry into the Government's handling of the pandemic. Families bereaved by COVID-19 have warned the Government that they will start legal action unless the Prime Minister launches a statutory public inquiry into the Government's handling of the pandemic. On 17 March 2021, lawyers for 25 bereaved spouses and children gave the Government two weeks' notice that without a commitment they will go to court to claim ministers are breaking the law by not launching an inquiry "without further delay". The COVID-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group has more than 2,800 members.  

15,000 deaths under review at hospital in opiate scandal. Deaths at Gosport War Memorial Hospital in Hampshire between 1987 and 2001, where 450 patients' lives were allegedly shortened with opiates without medical justification, are to be reviewed in a huge investigation by the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, which is to examine 15,000 death certificates and 700 patient records.

Bevan Brittan Updates

Integration and innovation: the White Paper proposals on improved quality and safety in the NHS - Julia Jones

Bevan Brittan Events

Bevan Brittan Clinical Risk/Health, Care and Regulatory Law Team Training - These are internal hour long lunch time training sessions that are attended by our team of solicitors. If you would like to receive more information about our webinar programme just ask Claire Bentley.

Tissue viability, wound management and falls/ Diabetes in primary care - 20 April 2021 12.30pm - 1.30pm

Eye surgery in the private and NHS setting - 4 May 2021 12.30pm - 1.30pm

If you would like to receive the Education Lunch Programme for 2021 just ask Claire Bentley. 

How we can help

We are working with clients on formulating policies and making it easier to balance treatment with finite resources. We are helping with social care policies and day to day activities such as contact and isolation, human rights issues and life/death decisions. We are working on notifications of harm and death, RIDDOR, CQC compliance, judicial review, infection control law and grappling with the new regulations and guidance. For more information click here.

If you wish to discuss any clinical risk or patient safety issues please contact Tim Hodgetts or Joanna Lloyd.

Back to top

Commissioning

Publications / guidance

Understanding and addressing inequalities in physical activity: evidence-based guidance for commissioners This guidance can be used by practitioners and commissioners at a local level to begin tackling inequalities in physical activity across and within protected characteristic groups. It presents the findings of a review, analysis and research aimed at understanding the enablers, barriers and opportunities for increasing physical activity across inequality groups.

NHS population screening: improving access for people in secure and detained settings This guidance provides information on how to improve access to screening for people in secure and detained settings. Settings covered by this guidance include prisons, immigration removal centres, secure children’s homes, secure training centres and young offender institutions. It is designed to be used by providers and commissioners of local NHS screening services as well as prison health care teams.

If you wish to discuss the issue of commissioning please contact David Owens.

Back to top

Digital Health

Publications/guidance

Digital inclusion and older people – how have things changed in a Covid-19 world? This briefing paper looks at the impact the pandemic has had on internet use among people aged 52+ in England. It considers what needs to be done to ensure that everyone who can benefit from digital technology does so while taking care to make sure that those who find it difficult to access or use digital technology are not left behind.

Driving digital in the NHS. Speech by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care at the Digital Health Rewired Festival. Matt Hancock has spoken about the impact of technology on healthcare providers’ ability to respond to COVID-19 – and the vital role it will play in the future.

If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around Digital Health please contact Daniel Morris.

Back to top 

Employment/HR  

Publications/guidance

How the British National (Overseas) Visa can support your workforce supply pipeline. NHS Employers has published information on the British National (Overseas) Visa, including some additional considerations to be aware of such as meeting professional registration requirements.

Putting people first: supporting NHS staff in the aftermath of Covid-19 Caring for patients and service users during the Covid-19 pandemic has taken an enormous toll on NHS and social care staff. This report, part of the NHS Reset campaign, considers the five key factors needed for the NHS to provide the most effective environment to retain – and sustain – staff over the weeks and months ahead.

Rest, recover, restore: getting UK health services back on track This report states that the Covid-19 pandemic has left the health service running on empty, with staff burnt out, disillusioned, and even considering leaving the NHS as a result of the intense pressures and stress of the past year. It sets out a series of recommendations to UK governments to ensure that services resume safely for both staff and patients.

National Education and Training Survey 2020 This survey gathers opinions from students about their time in clinical placements, asking them to provide feedback on what worked well and what they think could be improved. The results offer universities, colleges, health care placement providers and Health Education England further insight into the quality of the clinical learning environment. This year, as students may be undertaking clinical placements during pandemic surges, the survey provides an additional opportunity to understand their experience and any impact on the quality of training. Results of the survey are now available below by region and by profession.

Code of practice for the international recruitment of health and social care personnel in England This code of practice aims to promote high standards of ethical practice in the international recruitment and employment of health and social care personnel. It also sets out the UK’s approach to supporting health and social care systems and workforce, alongside safeguards on active recruitment from countries with the most pressing health and social care workforce needs related to universal health coverage. It is aimed at all health or social care organisations or recruitment agencies undertaking international recruitment.

A consultancy habit? The use of external management advice in the NHS The use of paid management consultants in the NHS has become habitual despite having a negative impact on efficiency. This inflation of demand for consulting services occurred even when they failed to improve performance. In fact, policy initiatives such as outsourcing and private financing of hospital buildings had worse outcomes for efficiency when carried out with the help of consultants’ advice.

The UK nursing labour market review 2020 This report examines the shape, size and state of the nursing labour market, analysing trends in the employment and training of nursing staff across the UK economy.

The Royal College – our professional home: an independent review on diversity and inclusion for the Royal College of Surgeons of England This report sets out a 16-point plan for improving diversity within surgery and the Royal College of Surgeons of England. It highlights some of the College’s strengths in fostering a diverse surgical community, including the Women in Surgery Network and the Lady Estelle Wolfson Emerging Leaders Fellowship. However, it also includes personal accounts of the discrimination surgeons face in their day-to-day practice and interactions with the College.

RCN independent review of guidelines for the prevention and control of Covid-19 in health care settings in the United Kingdom: evaluation and messages for future infection-related emergency planning This report of an independent review finds that the government’s Covid-19 infection control guidelines, which are used across the UK, are in need of updating. It calls for all NHS staff to be given a higher level of personal protective equipment as a precautionary measure pending the outcome of a review.

NHS staff survey 2020 This resource presents results from an annual survey to collect staff views and experiences about working in their NHS organisation.

News

Record number of NHS doctors and nurses in England Provisional figures show that as of January 2021, there are a total of 123,813 doctors and 301,491 nurses working in the NHS.

Bevan Brittan Updates

Compulsory Covid-19 vaccinations for care workers - Jodie Sinclair

Landmark "sleep-in" case - implications for care sector - Jodie Sinclair

NHS overtime payments and pay during annual leave - James Gutteridge

Integration and innovation: where is the workforce in the white paper? - Alastair Currie

How we can help

We can offer support and advice on managing many workforce issues including flexing your workforce to respond to the pandemic, managing bank staff, redeployment, vulnerable groups, sick pay, leave options, supporting staff well-being, presenteeism, remote and home working, through FAQs, helpline or policy guidance and practical day to day advice.  

If you wish to discuss any employment issues generally please contact Jodie Sinclair,  Alastair Currie or James Gutteridge.

Back to top 

Finance 

Publications/Guidance

The NHS external audit market: current issues and possible solutions The HFMA is increasingly hearing from its members that they are finding it difficult to appoint an external auditor, with little or no interest being shown in invitations to tender for external audit services. This briefing considers: the background to the current audit arrangements in the NHS; recent events impacting the wider audit market, up to and including the Redmond review; and current issues for NHS bodies and their auditors based on the outcome of a survey of finance directors and discussions with auditors and other interested parties.

Investigation into government funding to charities during the Covid-19 pandemic In 2020, the government announced a £750 million financial support package for frontline charities. It designed the package as part of its response to the Covid-19 pandemic. It targeted its support at those organisations in the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector providing vital services to the vulnerable. This report explores the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s distribution and oversight of £513 million of the package. It considers how the Department allocated funds, how financial support could be accessed by the sector and where financial support was received.

If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around finance please contact Claire Bentley. 

Back to top

Inquests 

Bevan Brittan Events

The interplay between inquests and incident investigations. We discussed the role of SI investigations/RCA reports in the inquest process, including the interplay between a report prepared to learn lessons but also used as evidence at inquest. We focused on the role then investigation plays as well as how to support staff giving evidence at the Coroner’s Court. Additionally, we explored how these reports, and inquests generally, can impact on the claims process

If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around inquests, please contact Toby De Mellow, Samantha Minchin or Claire Leonard 

Back to top

Mental Health 

Publications/guidance 

Learning from lives and deaths: people with a learning disability and autistic people (LeDeR) policy 2021 This policy aims to set out for the first time for the NHS the core aims and values of the LeDeR programme and the expectations placed on different parts of the health and social care system in delivering the programme from June 2021.

COVID-19 mental health and wellbeing recovery action plan. The Government plan to prevent, mitigate and respond to the mental health impacts of the pandemic during 2021 to 2022.

Reforming the Mental Health Act: The King’s Fund’s response

Preventing suicide in England: Fifth progress report of the cross-government outcomes strategy to save lives. A Department of Health and Social Care report details the steps taken to reduce deaths by suicide since its last report in January 2019. It focuses on: data and evidence on suicide and self-harm; progress made against existing commitments designed to prevent suicides and self-harm; and further actions for the Government and its agencies, particularly in the context of COVID-19.

Involving and supporting partners and other family members in specialist perinatal mental health services: good practice guide This best practice guidance describes women and their families with a positive experience of care, with services joined up around them and earlier diagnosis and intervention, and support to recover, ensuring fewer women, their infants and partners suffer avoidable harm.

Guidance: Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) and the Restricted Patient System Guidance from HM Prison and Probation Service sets out information for Mental Health Casework Section staff and those working directly with restricted patients to outline Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) requirements and arrangements.

Maternal mental health during a pandemic: a rapid evidence review of Covid-19's impact This rapid evidence review (produced together with the Maternal Mental Health Alliance) looks at the impact of Covid-19 on the mental health of new and expectant mothers and the support that’s been available during the pandemic.  

Delivering preconception care to women of childbearing age with serious mental illness This guide is for health care professionals involved in the care of women with serious mental illness (SMI) in primary and secondary care. It aims to provide the latest evidence to support health care professionals having informed conversations on the considerations regarding mental and physical health for women of childbearing age with SMI, whether or not they are planning a pregnancy.

Involving and supporting partners and other family members in specialist perinatal mental health services: good practice guide This best practice guidance describes women and their families with a positive experience of care, with services joined up around them and earlier diagnosis and intervention, and support to recover, ensuring fewer women, their infants and partners suffer avoidable harm.

Legislation

Amended Pilot Practice Direction: Health, Education and Social Care Chamber of the First-Tier Tribunal (Mental Health) Following a March 2020 Pilot Practice Direction setting out how the Health, Education and Social Care Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal (Mental Health) might adjust its ways of working during the Covid-19 pandemic to limit the spread of the virus and manage their workloads appropriately, and its amendment and extension on 18 March 2021, the Senior President of Tribunals has agreed to extend it to 18 September 2021 and amend its terms.

If you wish to discuss any mental health issues facing your organisation please contact Simon Lindsay Hannah Taylor,or Stuart Marchant. 

Back to top 

Primary Care  

Publications/guidance

GP access during Covid-19 This report looks at how the Covid-19 pandemic has changed the way people access their GP and how this affected people's experience of care. While remote consultations have made getting care quicker, more efficient and easier to fit around their lives for many people, many people are struggling to access care from their GP practice, leaving them feeling frustrated and confused. Certain groups also risk being left behind, such as older people, disabled people, people affected by homelessness and on low incomes, and those whose first language isn’t English.

Remote working toolkit for general practices and primary care networks As remote working continues to be a reality for many, what are the implications for primary care? This guide outlines what's needed to make remote working effective and inclusive for all staff.  

Bevan Brittan Events

Bevan Brittan Clinical Risk/Health, Care and Regulatory Law Team Training - These are internal hour long lunch time training sessions that are attended by our team of solicitors. If you would like to receive more information about our webinar programme just ask Claire Bentley.

Tissue viability, wound management and falls/ Diabetes in primary care - 20 April 2021 12.30pm - 1.30pm      

Bevan Brittan Updates/Videos

Bevan Brittan has collaborated with NHS Resolution to produce a series of videos outlining key areas in general practice that frequently give rise to claims. Members of our clinical negligence team draw on their wealth of experience in dealing with claims to highlight the common areas of risk, provide guidance on how to mitigate or avoid these issues, and what steps to take if a complaint or a claim is received. The first three videos in this series are available to watch now. See below:-
Consent - Daniel Morris
Medical record keeping - Ben Lambert
Administrative errors - Susan Trigg
What to do if you receive a complaint or claim - Joanne Easterbrook
Common pitfalls - Helen Carrington

Other useful resources from NHS Resolution for primary care are set out below:-
1. General Practice Indemnity schemes
2. Understanding the Clinical Negligence Scheme for General Practice
3. Handling claims under the Clinical Negligence Scheme for General Practice
4. Covid-19 guidance for general practice 

How we can help   

We can offer support and advice on managing contractual and operational issues affecting the delivery of primary care services, including emerging legislative changes, updated guidance and policy arrangements, workforce issues and any transactional – related matters relating to vertical integrations, STPs, PCNs, etc.

If you wish to discuss any commercial, corporate or regulatory issues in primary care then please contact Vincent Buscemi.  

Back to top  

Providers 

Publications/Guidance  

Independent Sector Pilot. GIRFT review of Orthopaedics and Spines. The NHS’ Getting it Right First Time (GIRFT) programme have published their first ever review looking at independent healthcare services. GIRFT – an NHS programme designed to improve the quality of care within the NHS by reducing unwarranted variations – looked into orthopaedics and spinal services in a number of Independent Sector acute care providers including Horder Healthcare, Nuffield Health, Spire Healthcare and Practice Plus, visiting 63 hospitals in total as part of their review published this month.

Update on CQC's regulatory approach The three Chief Inspectors have published a statement about their future approach, outlining changes that will take effect from April, and what they mean for providers from all sectors.  

NHS population screening: improving access for people in secure and detained settings This guidance provides information on how to improve access to screening for people in secure and detained settings. Settings covered by this guidance include prisons, immigration removal centres, secure children’s homes, secure training centres and young offender institutions. It is designed to be used by providers and commissioners of local NHS screening services as well as prison health care teams.

Legislation for integrated care systems: five recommendations to government and parliament This document makes five specific recommendations to the government on the question of how to legislate to place integrated care systems (ICSs) on a statutory footing, having gathered the views of the NHS, local government and wider stakeholders.

Integrated care systems in London: challenges and opportunities ahead Commissioned by the Greater London Authority, this report looks at how the five integrated care systems in London were developing before Covid-19 and how this has changed as a result of the response to the pandemic.

Bevan Brittan Updates 

Consultation on proposals for NHS provider selection regime. On 11 February 2021, NHS England published the NHS Provider Selection Regime: Consultation on Proposals. The consultation builds on the contents of the Government’s proposed Health and Care Bill, and considers how the proposals in relation to the procurement of healthcare services might be implemented. We set out  some of the key points relevant not only to NHS commissioners, but to partner organisations and public/private sector providers.  The closing date for responses is 7 April 2021. 

If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around providers please contact Vincent Buscemi.  

Back to top 

Public Health 

Publications/guidance

Transforming the public health system: reforming the public health system for the challenges of our times. A Department of Health and Social Care policy paper sets out reforms to the public health system in England to transform national health protection capabilities, put health promotion at the heart of government, and more deeply embed prevention and health improvement expertise across local and national government and the NHS. To help with next steps comments by 26 April 2021.

Government Response to the Lords Science and Technology Committee Report - Ageing: science, technology and healthy living.  A Science and Technology Select Committee publication sets out the Government's response to its report on how current public health policy and the coordination of healthcare for older people may be contributing to more years spent in poor health. Key areas of discussion relate to: the underlying biological processes of ageing; lifestyle and environmental influences on healthy ageing; the Ageing Society Grand Challenge mission to ensure five years of extra healthy life by 2035; and the COVID-19 pandemic.

If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around public health please contact Claire Bentley. 

 

Back to top

Regulation  

Publications/Guidance 

Protect, respect, connect – decisions about living and dying well during Covid-19 This report describes variation in people’s experiences of do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation decisions during the pandemic. It finds some examples of good practice, but the Care Quality Commission also heard from people who were not properly involved in decisions, or were unaware that such an important decision about their care had been made. The report calls for the establishing of a Ministerial Oversight Group – working with partners in health and social care, local government and the voluntary sector – to take responsibility for delivering improvements in this area.

Bevan Brittan Updates

CQC's next wave of regulation and enforcement - CQC's post covid priorities for inspection and enforcement in physical and mental health.

If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around social care please contact Stuart Marchant. 

Back to top

 

Social Care  

Publications/Guidance 

Protect, respect, connect – decisions about living and dying well during Covid-19 This report describes variation in people’s experiences of do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation decisions during the pandemic. It finds some examples of good practice, but the Care Quality Commission also heard from people who were not properly involved in decisions, or were unaware that such an important decision about their care had been made. The report calls for the establishing of a Ministerial Oversight Group – working with partners in health and social care, local government and the voluntary sector – to take responsibility for delivering improvements in this area.

Long term funding of adult social care: call for evidence A Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee call for evidence to inform its inquiry on how adult social care should be funded in the long-term. The Committee aims to understand the extent to which the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has changed the landscape for long-term funding reform since previous recommendations on the subject together with the Health and Social Care Committee in 2018. The inquiry will consider how additional funds for adult social care can be raised, and how the adult social care market can be improved. Comments by 16 April 2021.

The adult social care market in England. This report examines the current care market and the Department’s role in overseeing the market now and in the future, with the aim of offering insights and recommendations ahead of future social care reforms. It builds on a significant body of past National Audit Office (NAO) work on care, including on the care workforce; personalised commissioning; and the interface between health and care.

A cry for hope: why 2021 must be the year for social care reform This report, based on a survey of more than 4,000 people at the end of 2020 who need social care, reveals that because of a lack of care one in seven (14 per cent) said they needed hospital treatment, and more than a quarter (28 per cent) said their health had deteriorated. The situation was worse for carers where two in five (41 per cent) said their health had deteriorated because of their caring responsibilities. Further statistics reveal that nearly one in four said they had asked for help during the pandemic but didn’t receive any.

The impact of the challenges to the social care sector in 2020 This report offers an annual snapshot of the financial health of the social care sector as well as outlining the impact of some of the key challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic. For the third year running, the most commonly cited cost pressure was rising wage bills, with lack of fee income at a close second. It finds that 62 per cent of providers reported a rise in absenteeism related to mental health conditions and that all social care providers funded some form of mental health support for their workforce.

Solving the social care dilemma? A responsible solution This report looks at the challenges to the government of social care pressures on local authority social care budgets and resentment from homeowners who risk having to sell their home to pay for long-term social care. The report responds to these competing challenges by setting out a plan for a public not-for-profit company, owned and guaranteed by the state. The plans outlined would offer everyone approaching state pension age the opportunity to take out insurance against the need to sell their home or other assets, to pay for social care if and when they meet the official conditions for such care.

Restricting workforce movement between care homes and other care settings A Department of Health and Social Care publication provides guidance for care home providers on limiting staff movement between settings in all but exceptional circumstances to help reduce the spread of the COVID-19 infection.

News

Update on CQC's regulatory approach. The CQC set out how they plan to have an active role in encouraging system wide recovery in the future.

Two care home workers in South Devon arrested over multiple Covid deaths

Improved oversight and reform needed as pressures of pandemic shine light on inconsistent and concerning approaches to DNACPR decisions

Bevan Brittan Updates

Landmark "sleep-in" case - implications for care sector - Jodie Sinclair

If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around social care please contact Siwan Griffiths.

Back to top

General 

Publications/Guidance 

The health and social care White Paper explained This long read describes the main proposals of the Department of Health and Social Care's White Paper 'Integration and innovation: working together to improve health and social care for all', published on 11 February 2021. It also sets out The King's Fund's initial assessment of the proposals and their implications for the health and care system.

COVID-19: housing people sleeping rough - Forty-Ninth Report of Session 2019-21. A House of Commons Public Accounts Committee report argues that the notable pandemic response success of the "Everyone In" initiative has exposed gaps in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG)'s approach to tackling rough sleeping. The report suggests the Department has a target to end rough sleeping by May 2024, but does not have a strategy for achieving this outcome or maintaining it once met; nor does it have a clear understanding of how it will measure and report on progress.

The NHS’s role in tackling poverty: awareness, action and advocacy One of the main drivers behind the creation of the NHS was to protect the poorest in society from being bankrupted by the need to pay for care. But the NHS can do more to mitigate, prevent and reduce poverty. This report sets out what the NHS, as the largest economic institution in the country, needs to maximise its contribution to tackling poverty, within its resources and with its partners.

State of health and care: the NHS long-term plan after Covid-19 After a decade of austerity, the NHS long-term plan was meant to be a turning point for health care. However, those plans have been severely disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic. This analysis shows the scale of the damage done by the pandemic across several major health conditions. It recommends a package of six ambitious changes to ‘build back better’.

How might leadership roles evolve in integrated health and care systems? This report for the NHS Leadership Academy explores some of the implications of the long-term plan and its supporting plans on leadership within local health and care systems, the roles that may emerge over time, and what knowledge, skills and support leaders need in the future. The report provides an overview of research carried out to better understand how leadership roles are changing in the health and social care sector, especially in collaborative and integrated health and care systems.

If you wish to discuss any queries around this general topic please contact Claire Bentley.

Back to top