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States Greffe: Scrutiny
Senator Lyndon Farnham Deputy Chief Minister
By Email
28th October 2021
Dear Deputy Chief Minister,
Our Hospital Project – next steps
On 25th October 2021, a number of senior officers took the time to provide the Panel with an update on the Our Hospital Project, the next milestones and how these would be achieved. The Panel thanks officers for their time.
Following the update and the recent debate on the Our Hospital Outline Business Case, the Panel has a number of queries to raise at this stage.
Planning application
- The Panel understands that it the intention remains that the planning application for the Our Hospital main site will be submitted in mid-November 2021.
In light of this timeframe and the expectation that you will provide your Ministerial Response to this Panel's report on the Our Hospital Outline Business Case (OBC) and Funding Review by no later than 12th November, please could you confirm whether the Government will be acting on recommendations 3 and 4 of that report prior to the submission of the application to ensure that the Planning Department and the public will be in receipt of as much as possible of the evidence needed to justify the scale of the build.
For ease of reference the relevant recommendations are:
• Recommendation 3
The Deputy Chief Minister must, prior to the finalisation of the Our Hospital designs, outline predicted revenue costs of the proposed changes in healthcare provision.
• Recommendation 4
The Deputy Chief Minister must, prior to final design of the private ward, provide to the Assembly a fully evidenced business case to justify the additional spend and space allocation to private services in the new hospital.
You will be aware from the findings of our report that a number of the key findings of our report related to the lack of justification for the scale of the project within the OBC. As a result of this, the Panel is now seeking your Government's assurance that this evidence
States Greffe | Morier House | St Helier | Jersey | JE1 1DD Tel: 01534 441080 | Fax: 01534 441077 | email: scrutiny@gov.je
will now be provided. If it is not your intention to accept and act on these recommendations, please detail how and when the evidence sought will be provided.
- The Panel understands that the planning application will need to comply with both the current and proposed Island Plans and that this will necessarily require a duplication of work by officers. While it is appreciated that this will be the case for all applications made during the period prior to the Island Plan debate, please can you quantify the additional cost to the Our Hospital project that this duplication entails.
Private health care
The Panel would be grateful if clarification could be provided on the percentage (and/or number of individuals) of the population with private health care. Over recent weeks, the Panel has received a number of different estimates and is keen to be provided with the correct information on this matter.
Workforce planning
Please could you confirm when a workforce planning strategy for the Our Hospital Project (as distinct from the general workforce strategy for the current health care and hospital structure) will be made available?
Transport to and from Les Quennevais
It is anticipated that clinical services will be moved up to the reprovision site at Les Quennevais (the former school building) from the final quarter of 2022.
Please outline the plan which is being developed to ensure good public transport access to the site. The Panel has heard concerns from agencies and individuals about the extra time that it will take to reach services at Les Quennevais, especially if trying to do so using public transport, and is keen to fully understand how the Our Hospital team will address these challenges.
The Panel would be grateful for a response to be provided within five working days of receipt of this letter.
Yours sincerely
Senator Kristina Moore
Chair
Future Hospital Review Panel
States Greffe | Morier House | St Helier | Jersey | JE1 1DD Tel: 01534 441080 | Fax: 01534 441077 | email: scrutiny@gov.je