The Health and Adult Social Care Scrutiny Panel was scheduled to consider an update on the transformation of mental health services provided by Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust. The panel was also scheduled to review the council's performance in adult social care, following a recent Care Quality Commission assessment.

Oxleas Mental Health Services Improvement and Transformation Update

The panel was scheduled to receive a presentation from Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust regarding its ongoing mental health service improvement and transformation programme. This update was expected to cover progress against the trust's objectives, including service performance, quality improvement initiatives, workforce considerations, and responses to regulatory recommendations. The aim was to provide assurance that the improvement activities were delivering positive outcomes for residents, addressing risks, strengthening integration with health and care partners, and ensuring the continued delivery of safe, effective, and accessible mental health services.

The report pack indicated that the Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust had been working on several key areas. This included the ACMH Psychosis Redesign, which aimed to address variations in care, pathway pressures, and workforce challenges, and respond to national scrutiny following cases like the Valdo Calocane incident. The redesign was intended to improve productivity while maintaining safe, evidence-based care, with principles including using demand and capacity evidence, a trusted assessor approach, and NICE-concordant care. The trust was also undertaking an ADAPT and Mental Health Hub Redesign to ensure clinically safe, financially sustainable, and operationally robust care, aiming for recurrent savings. This involved mapping current pathways, building a baseline of access, activity, and quality, and designing future states through workshops and stakeholder engagement.

Furthermore, the report pack detailed the Emerging Oxleas clinical operating model, which outlined a phased approach to mental health care, from initial access and formulation through to core treatment, specialist interfaces, and recovery/step-down. This model was designed to provide a single front door for assessment, containment, and treatment, with clear leads and settings for each stage.

The report pack also highlighted specific service challenges and improvements within Oxleas. The Adult ADHD Service was facing significant demand and workforce challenges, particularly concerning medication pathways and prescriber ratios. Despite these challenges, the service had reportedly reduced assessment waits to become the shortest in London and implemented e-prescribing and psychoeducation groups.

The pack also detailed South East London Integrated Care Board (SEL ICB) priorities for mental health in Integrated Neighbourhood Teams (INTs). These priorities included developing a mind and body focus within INTs, expanding the approach to include severe mental illness (SMI), and exploring the role of neighbourhood-based care in reducing the mortality gap for people with SMI. The SIF programme position was also outlined, detailing how £495k in funding was being used to strengthen integrated neighbourhood care, improve physical health outcomes for people with SMI, and embed mental health support within frailty and multi-morbidity pathways.

Finally, the report pack provided an overview of Greenwich Adult Mental Health performance, including data on referral waiting times for first and second appointments, and the Mental Health Hub referral to appointment within 14 days metric.

CQC Improvement Plan and Adult Social Care Performance

The panel was scheduled to consider a report on the Care Quality Commission (CQC) improvement plan and adult social care performance. The report pack indicated that the Royal Borough of Greenwich had received an overall rating of Good following its first formal CQC assessment of adult social care services in over fifteen years. The assessment had identified strengths such as visible leadership and partnership working, alongside areas for further development including consistency of practice and accessibility. The report pack suggested that the panel might wish to track metrics such as Waiting Well outcomes, carer satisfaction, and respite provision.

Public Questions on Agenda Items

The agenda also included a slot for public questions on agenda items, with a deadline for submission prior to the meeting.