Agenda item

To receive a presentation regarding the B&NES Council and NHS local response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

A copy of the report which was considered at the full Council meeting held on 16 June 2020 can be found using the following link Covid-19 - Update Report and Position Statement

David Trethewey, Corinne Edwards and Louise Cadle – 11.25am – 25 minutes

David Trethewey, Director, Partnership and Corporate Services, reported that the Council had responded very quickly and effectively to the Covid-19 outbreak.  It had been necessary to adapt very quickly and to adopt new innovations and solutions.  The Compassionate Communities hub has been very successful and is an excellent example of partnership working.  Business grants have been administered very quickly.  The pandemic has had a profound effect on the Council’s finances and a recovery plan will be considered by the Cabinet in July.  There is currently a deficit of £42m which will have a large impact going forward.

Louise Cadle, from the CCG gave a brief presentation which covered:

·  Summary of timeline.  We are currently at week 21 of a major incident response.  The NHS is now on Alert Level 4. 

·  Revised B&NES, Swindon and Wiltshire response arrangements.

·  Key priorities

o  PPE (Personal Protective Equipment.

o  Testing – there are mobile testing centres at Bristol Airport, Swindon and Salisbury.

o  Anti-body testing – around 29,000 NHS staff will be tested for anti-bodies.

o  Health and wellbeing

o  Care homes

Corinne Edwards, Chief Operating Officer, gave a presentation regarding the CCG response to the Covid-19 pandemic which covered the following issues:

·  Overview of how to re-start the system

o  Adopt a common set of design criteria across B&NES, Swindon and Wiltshire.

o  Co-ordinate plans at B&NES, Swindon and Wiltshire level where appropriate.

o  Build on the energy and joint working in each locality.

·  Key areas of work e.g. restarting referrals.

·  Key challenges

·  Progress being made

·  B&NES locality hub and working

·  Role and purpose of community hub – this has been very successful

o  ensure we remain prepared for COVID and;

o  ensure the re-start and restoration of services

·  How health and care partners in the area have responded so far

The following issues were then discussed:

·  It was important to be prepared in case of a second spike of infections. 

·  A helpful mutual aid arrangement for PPE has now been put in place with links across the South West region.  It is not ideal to work with a “just in time” arrangement.

·  Will Godfrey stated that this was a very helpful presentation.  He queried how many people in the area had been discharged from hospital to a care home from April onwards.  He felt that it was important to ensure the correct balance between regional structures and maintaining a strong focus on individual localities.

·  Corinne Edwards confirmed that the Health Protection Board retained a focus on each locality.

·  Cllr Appleyard asked what action was being taken to prevent domestic abuse at this time and to provide support for those experiencing both abuse and isolation.  He also acknowledged the support provided to care homes by both B&NES Council and the CCG.  Corinne Edwards stated that the CCG is very mindful of the possibility of an increase in domestic abuse cases.

·  Lesley Hutchinson confirmed that the Community Safety and Safeguarding Partnership are considering issues relating to domestic abuse both at national and local level.  Some areas have seen an increase in cases since the start of the pandemic.

·  Bryn Bird stated that in a virtual setting, clinicians could lose some of the personal aspect which is present in a face to face meeting.  He informed the Board that some guidance relating to domestic abuse and safeguarding issues will soon be launched by the healthcare sector in B&NES, Swindon and Wiltshire.

The presentation slides are attached as Appendix 4 to these minutes.

RESOLVED: To note the update report and position statement.