1.4.20 Changes to services at Solent NHS Trust
News
Following on from Sir Simon Stevens’ and Amanda Pritchard’s letter of 17 March 2020 and Matthew Winn’s subsequent communication of 19 March 2020 which set out direction for COVID-19 Prioritisation within Community Health Services, please see below assurance of the Trust approach to implementing changes to community services to provide capacity to support the COVID-19 preparedness and response.
All our commissioned community services under our NHS standard contract have been reviewed with priority given to discharge pathways; and essential support to high-risk individuals and patients cared for at home. The following steps have been taken:
- The Trust emergency preparedness, resilience and response framework has been enacted and is considered at the daily system call.
- Services have reviewed and implemented their business continuity plans where appropriate.
- All services have completed an assessment of frontline workforce capacity and their ability to safely operate in the event of a reduction in workforce. Mitigation plans have been put in place for essential services.
- Where changes to services are necessary to ensure patient safety, or as a consequence of re-deployment of staff to priority essential services, a corresponding Quality Impact Assessment (QIA) has been completed to consider necessity of the changes, assessment of risk and proposed mitigation plans.
- All QIAs have been reviewed by Jackie Ardle (Chief Nurse), Jonathon Prosser (Medical Director) and respective Operational Directors. These QIAs are ratified at our weekly Ethics Group, which reports to our Quality Assurance sub-committee.
- Following QIA approval, the changes are implemented. The Trust is updating its directory of services with key messages and contacts. We would welcome CCG support in disseminate changes to key stakeholders and referrers, including Primary Care.
