Agenda and minutes

To elect a Chair for the 2020-2021 municipal year.

RESOLVED that Councillor Fielker be elected as Chair for the 2020-2021 municipal year.

To elect a Vice-Chair for the 2020-2021 municipal year.

RESOLVED that Dr Kelsey be elected as Vice-Chair for the 2020-2021 municipal year.

To note any changes in membership of the Board made in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4.3.

The apologies of James Rimmer were noted.

The Board also noted that the Councillors Fielker, Paffey, Savage, Shields and Windle were appointed as members of the Board at Cabinet on 19 May 2020.  The Board noted that Hilary Brooks had left the Council and that Grainne Siggins had been appointed as Interim Director of Children and Families.

The Chair expressed thanks to Councillor Shields for all he had done for the Health and Wellbeing Board.

Councillor Savage declared a personal interest in that his wife worked for a counselling service.  He remained in the meeting and took part in the consideration and determinations of items on the agenda.

To approve and sign as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 22 January 2020 and to deal with any matters arising, attached.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on 22 January 2020 be approved and signed as a correct record.

The Board received the report of the Director of Quality and Integration that outlined the response of health and care services in Southampton to the outbreak of Covid 19.

Stephanie Ramsey – Director of Quality and Integration was present and with the consent of the chair addressed the meeting.

The Board noted that:

·  Covid 19 had created a rapidly changing health situation in the city which had required considerable planning about how to respond and what would be needed in the future;

·  There had been some very positive work as a result of the pandemic including the identification of the possible benefits of discharging people rapidly from hospital admissions in the future, increased telephone consultations and more cohesive working together of different medical services;

·  More people in the city were suffering from mental health issues and the bereavement service had an increased workload;

·  BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) risk assessments would be needed for staff as their likelihood of contracting the virus more severely was heightened;

·  Lockdown in Southampton had reduced the number of infected people within the city but there would be a need to continue to monitor the infection rate (R) and check various indicators to keep track of the R value; and

·  There had been a severe decrease in the general public seeking medical advice, although GP practices had remained open.  It was noted that there was more work to be done on communicating to the public that GP surgeries were open and the process involved to access their GP.

Report of the Director of Public Health exploring Health Inequalities and Covid-19 recovery activity.

The Board considered the report from the Interim Director of Public Health detailing the impact of Covid 19 on health inequalities in Southampton.

Kate Lees, Locum Consultant in Public Health, and Stephanie Ramsey, Director of Quality and Integration Southampton City CCG were present and with the consent of the Chair, addressed the meeting.

The Board received a presentation from Kate Lees regarding health inequalities which were summarised as being differences in health outcomes between people or groups due to social, geographical, biological or other factors. These differences had a significant impact, because they resulted in people who were worst off experiencing poorer health and shorter lives. 

The Board noted that:

·  There was a statutory responsibility for local authorities to improve this situation;

·  Covid 19 had impacted access to urgent care, care for long-term conditions and, in the future, long term mental and socio-economic issues would be encountered;

·  The looming recession and job losses would be likely to exacerbate chronic health inequalities;

·  Work was underway to address and improve the outcome for loneliness and social isolation in the city;

·  There had been significant health inequalities In Southampton before Covid-19 but the pandemic was likely to exacerbate health inequalities;

·  Evidence about the virus was emerging, and this intelligence should be used  to inform decision-making;

·  Evidence-based approaches required a ‘whole-system’ approach;

·  It was important to scrutinise strategies and plans for dealing with health inequalities with a long term approach; and

·  There was a need to engage with employers, schools and job centres to aid the current situation.

RESOLVED that the Board agree to consider the impact on health inequalities and re balancing of plans when developing a Covid 19 recovery strategy.

The Board considered the report of the Interim Director of Public Health seeking approval of the Southampton City Suicide Prevention Plan 2020-2023.

Amy McCullough, Consultant in Public Health, was present and with the consent of the Chair, addressed the meeting.

The Board noted that:

·  The aim of the plan was to reduce the number of suicides in Southampton and to ensure provision of support to those bereaved by suicide, focussing on, but not limited to, groups at high risk of taking their own life;

·  A multi partnership approach was required to attain the maximum success with suicide prevention with regular updates within groups to encourage coordination;

·  Although the suicide rate in Southampton had decreased over recent years, the city was still above the national average figure;

·  Schools should be suicide alert and that there was a short online video training available to download;

·  Front line care workers needed to be trained regarding discussions on suicide;

·  There was a need to promote the resources that were available to help with suicide prevention; and

·  It would be useful to hold a virtual All Members Briefing to show resources available on suicide prevention and to discuss ways of sign posting people to the correct form of help.

RESOLVED

(i)  That the Southampton Suicide Prevention Plan 2020-2023 be approved; and

(ii)  That an update report on delivery against the Plan be received by the Board once a year, with exception reports as appropriate.