Annual Business Plan 2007 (P.92-2006) - second amendment

STATES OF JERSEY

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ANNUAL BUSINESS PLAN 2007 (P.92/2006): SECOND AMENDMENT

Lodged au Greffe on 24th August 2006 by Deputy R.G. Le Hérissier of St. Saviour

STATES GREFFE

ANNUAL BUSINESS PLAN 2007 (P.92/2006): SECOND AMENDMENT ____________

In paragraph (a)(iv) after the words "pages 48 to 50 of the Annex" insert the words –

"e x c e pt that in Objective 2, on page 49 of the Annex, after the existing performance/success criteria, insert

the following new item –

In t r o d u c e in d ependent complaints process by January 2007."

DEPUTY R.G. LE HÉRISSIER OF ST. SAVIOUR

REPORT

Although there is much justifiable praise for Jersey's Health Service, there remain a few instances where individuals feel they have a legitimate grievance and which they feel can only be resolved by a party independent of the Health Service. It would be expected that this mechanism would be activated only after internal attempts at achieving a satisfactory outcome had been exhausted.

Often, the nature of the issues is such that the aggrieved parties would be very reluctant to use established mechanisms like the Administrative Appeals system (soon to be renamed the States Complaints Panel).

In answer to questions posed by the writer (see Appendix) and in other contexts the Minister has acknowledged the need for an independent mechanism and has indicated that it is hoped to have it in place by the end of 2006.

My understanding is that the independent U.K. Healthcare Commission will be carrying out inspections of Jersey's Health Service and has agreed to take this aspect under its wing.

It is very important that there be a clear dated commitment to the introduction of this procedure. While it should not be required very often, it is essential that the ability to make a complaint to an independent body exists.

Financial and manpower statement

It is assumed that the budget for the work of the independent Healthcare Commission has a notional amount allocated  for these purposes.  In  addition  resources  are already  expended  on  investigating complaints  and  I therefore see no need for additional resources.

APPENDIX

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES BY DEPUTY R.G. LE HERISSIER OF ST. SAVIOUR

ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 28th MARCH 2006

Question

Will the Minister give the date, if any, upon which procedures for independent investigation of complaints will come into effect?

Answer

The former Health and Social Services Committee agreed to introduce a complaints policy in 1992 which has been effective since 1993. The Health and Social Services Department has reported annually on its number and nature of complaints since 1996. But it was only in 2004 that a dedicated complaints coordinator was introduced to the service so that a formal complaints procedure could be implemented. This has meant that patients, relatives and carers now have clear access to procedures to register formal complaints and feedback on the quality of services. The Department values the contribution that these complaints make to continuously improving services for patients and clients.

The reality of the situation is that the number of complaints that the Department receives is very low. In 2005 it received 154 complaints for all Health and Social Services areas. When one considers that the General Hospital alone dealt with over 170,000 attendances last year, (actual 174,727 - in patient, out patient, day cases and A&E attendances), that represents less than one complaint for every 1000 patient interactions. This figure becomes even lower when one includes all the activities and attendances for Social Services, Overdale and St Saviour sites.

The Department has just received an independent survey of patient satisfaction at the Jersey General Hospital by the Picker Institute in March 2006. It reveals high levels of satisfaction with the services provided with 96% of respondents reporting that the care they received is good, very good, or excellent. However, just under 20% of respondents reported that they didn't know how to make a formal complaint. Although this performance is better than the U.K. average, we still need to work to ensure that our patients know how to make a complaint. The Picker Institute independently carries out such assessment of all NHS Trusts in the U.K., and benchmarked to their performance, the Jersey General Hospital scored above U.K. average in overall performance across all domains.

We must be aware, however, that Jersey's Health and Social Care service is, largely speaking, a single provider for the people of Jersey. In terms of investigating complaints, one could argue that the Department can act as judge and jury. We must be confident that service users receive a fair response when they make a complaint and we must be assured that the Department acts appropriately on any concerns, and, where appropriate, makes changes to ensure improvements in service delivery.

To  ensure  that  standards  are  independently  inspected,  the  Department  is  in  discussion  with  the  Healthcare Commission  to  carry out  an  independent  inspection  of  Health and  Social  Services  in Jersey  in  2007.  The Healthcare Commission carry out all such inspections for NHS Trusts and independent healthcare providers in the U.K. They also act as the second stage independent complaints investigation for all of these U.K. providers. Senior Officers from HSSD will be meeting with representatives from the Healthcare Commission in early May 2006 to invite the Commission to provide this function for the States of Jersey's Health and Social Services Department. Such a process of second stage independent investigation of complaints may include the setting up of a local independent panel, guided by a case manager provided by the Healthcare Commission who would be brought in specifically to manage complaints. Although timescales, costs and consultation, both internal and external, are yet to be finalised, the Chief Officer will shortly establish a small, clinically led working group to move this objective forward and it is anticipated that such a system could be in place by the end of 2006.