Arts, Health and Care in Calderdale
We are at an important moment in the story of Calderdale. There is a sense of vitality and possibility in the air. The leadership of the key organisations acting to improve health and care within Calderdale are responding to this, and have established new partnership arrangements based upon humanity, trust and a commitment to collaboration. One of the consequences of this is a new leadership narrative – a new story that we are telling about the strength of our vision and ambition for the place and the people we are here to serve. We are using five words which we believe represent the values and approach which will work. Those words are kindness, resilience, talented, enterprising and distinctive. We want these words and the values which lie behind them to be felt in all of the work that we do as a partnership.
Alongside that is the agreement of the leadership group to generate a meaningful response to the All Party Parliamentary Group report Creative Health; The Arts for Health and Wellbeing. The genesis of this report is itself rooted in a deeply felt view from its authors, that years of unrelenting political focus upon notions of economic growth, followed by years of austerity, has led to fracture and disconnection within society and a sense that ideas of humanity and community are devalued and not regarded as an asset.
Through this response we hope to demonstrate our commitment to this deeply human agenda, but we want to go further than that. Our support is a personal commitment from each of us to take responsibility for this work and to champion it within our organisations, within the wider partnership that each of us is acting within, and to celebrate and to nurture this important dimension of life in Calderdale.
As I talk about Calderdale and the growing confidence I feel about the place, the impact of the rejuvenated Piece Hall upon the experience of living in Calderdale feels more and more important. I know that the politics of actually delivering the result were complicated, and that at times the question was asked about whether it would be worth it. But to experience the place, to feel the life it has breathed into the town centre of Halifax, and to feel the sense of community which is palpable on the great days when it is full of people drawn from this place and beyond, is extraordinary. It teaches us again that with the right will and determination, it is possible to revitalise that which we already have but had forgotten we had, and to turn it into something beautiful, relevant and significant. It represents, in its architecture, its light, its history and its new purpose, a response to each of those five words. For me, it is a beacon of hope and it represents that sense of possibility that I feel. It says ‘if we can do this, then we can do anything’.
We have tremendous talent in Calderdale. We have people who are extraordinarily committed to this place and who express that commitment in myriad ways. We have energy and creativity in abundance. The relationship between arts and health is understood in our experience of the world, and for those of us who have spent years of our lives working with people in difficulty with their health and wellbeing, it has always been clear that whilst medicine and related disciplines can help to solve many problems, the fundamental issues which confront us at a human level are to do with to our relationship with ourselves, with those close to us and with the community of which we wish to be a part.
Happiness and love. Pain, longing and loss. Reconciliation and redemption. Our sense of self and our way of connecting to ourselves and to others at an emotional level. That is what art in all its forms can help us with.
I was asked to speak at a national launch event for the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) report recently and in preparing for that I reached out to colleagues who have been part of the Artworks Art for Wellbeing initiative, to ask if they might share with me some images that I could use to illustrate my talk. Their powerful images, shared so generously, helped me to bring to life a conversation about our ambition in Calderdale to do something important on this agenda. At that event I talked about my own personal relationship with music and books. How music has helped me to deal with some of the most difficult things I have faced in my life, and how books and reading have provided me with both inspiration and escape. I talked about the way in which art and working with artists has enabled us, in my part of the health world, to change the conversations that we have been having about the need for change, and how our use of art has helped us in our attempts to improve relationships and connect to the heart as well as to the head. I know by my witness that making this connection can unlock doors previously closed.
Art can heal us. Art can help us to tell new stories which will take us to new places, and art can help us to tell the old stories in a way that connect at a deeper level. I know this is true for me, and I know it to be true for those I love and for those with whom I work. The APPG report dutifully and meaningfully categorises the evidence, but we have always known it to be true, in our hearts.
For me, the most beautiful thing about art, music and performance are the spaces and silences before, during and after. It is in those spaces where the transformation happens. It is there in the spaces where something is created out of nothing. It is in those silences we feel most engaged, most present. There is a space between the worlds of health and art. It is not an empty space. It is one full of potential. I have thought a lot about the relationship between my job and my work lately. Whilst our jobs will continue to challenge us, our work as leaders now is to begin to create connections between those worlds, and in so doing we will remind ourselves of what we always had, but which we had forgotten was so important.
Just to conclude, and to acknowledge something that has happened since writing this piece, it was heartening to hear that Matt Hancock, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, in his conference speech this week say ‘we need to look after people as people, and not patients - whether it be through prescribing exercise, the arts, or nutritional advice……rather than yet more drugs and medical interventions’. You can find out more about the benefits to health and wellbeing from the arts across Calderdale in the work of Artworks, Creative Minds and Hope St for example.
Have a good weekend
Matt
What else has been happening this week?
Harnessing Power of Community
Last Friday (28 September), the Harnessing Power of Community (HPoC) steering group met for the first time to discuss the strategic overview and intended delivery of the programme. The meeting was chaired by Dr Soo Nevison, CEO for Community Action Bradford and District. Soo is our Partnership Programme Lead. A number of voluntary and community sector (VCS) representatives across our area attended the meeting; this included representation from Voluntary Action Calderdale, Age UK (Wakefield), Forum Central, Community First Yorkshire and led by our SRO from Community Action Bradford and District. The group discussed a number of funded projects which will sit within the HPoC umbrella. This includes the £1M investment fund to tackle loneliness. Further information will be shared soon.
West Yorkshire and Harrogate Clinical Forum
The Clinical Forum met on Tuesday. The meeting was chaired by Dr Andy Withers. Forum members include medical and nursing directors and other clinical leads for the area. There was an update on the stroke programme which will also be discussed at the West Yorkshire Joint Overview Committee on the 8 October. This included an overview on work to prevent strokes happening and working together with our hospitals to provide the best possible care when they do.
Jo Harding gave an overview on the development of a consistent approach to undertaking quality and equality impact assessments for our service change and improvement programmes. This was also discussed at the Joint Committee of the CCGs, who were supportive of the work. The guidance produced will be piloted with the improving planned care and reducing variation programme, before potential roll out across other West Yorkshire and Harrogate priority areas.
The Clinical Forum also discussed the development of the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Clinical Strategy. Robin Jeffrey the Clinical Lead for WYAAT (West Yorkshire Association of Acute Trusts – hospitals working together) and also a consultant at Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS FT gave an update on the work. It was agreed that a Clinical Strategy Steering Group would be established to oversee this work.
Dr Paul Twomey from NHS England presented the final paper to the Forum on the implications of the NHS Five Year Forward View new care models service design regarding the role for medical and clinical governance (safe, supported and sustainable).
West Yorkshire Association of Acute Trusts Programme Executive (hospitals working together)
The WYAAT Programme Executive, comprising the six Chief Executives of the acute trusts in West Yorkshire and Harrogate, met on Tuesday. The meeting was chaired by Julian Hartley, Chief Executive of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
The Chief Executives received an update on the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Stroke Programme setting out its progress on improving the whole pathway from the prevention of Atrial Fibrillation in the community to “Hyper Acute” stroke care for patients after a stroke (carer in the first 72 hours). The group congratulated the programme on its excellent work to improve care for people.
The meeting also received updates on two important WYAAT led programmes. The Yorkshire Imaging Collaborative is a programme to improve the quality and efficiency of medical imaging (“radiology”). It will enable doctors and other healthcare professionals to share images across all our hospitals to support better patient care and earlier diagnosis. In addition to its current work, the programme has been allocated £6m to further develop shared IT systems for radiology. Scan4Safety is a programme using barcode technology to ensure care is provided as “Right Patient, Right Process, Right Product, Right Place”. £15m has been allocated to roll the technology out across all six hospital trusts in West Yorkshire and Harrogate, building on the success of Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust as a demonstrator site.
Joint Committee of the Clinical Commissioning Group
The Joint Committee of Clinical Commissioning Groups met on Tuesday. The meeting was chaired by Marie Burnham (Independent Lay Chair). There was an update on the West Yorkshire Vascular Improvement Programme by Matthew Groom from NHS England and Matt Graham from WYAAT (West Yorkshire Association of Acute Trusts) which are working together.
Committee members received an overview on arrangements for commissioning 999 and 111 services across Yorkshire and the Humber. The Committee commented on the proposals, which will be considered by the Yorkshire and Humber Joint Strategic Commissioning Board later this month. The commissioning strategy focuses on prevention; triage and advice; and treatment and flow.
The Committee welcomed progress on a new, integrated approach to assessing the impact of the Committee’s commissioning decisions on quality and equality. There was also a stocktake on the work of the Committee so far; looking at progress against its work plan and the priorities in ‘Our next steps to better health and care for everyone’ You can also read the Joint Committee of the CCGs Annual Report here
The next meeting held in public will take place on Tuesday 6 November. You can find out more about the work of the Committee here.
West Yorkshire and Harrogate System Leadership Executive
The Leadership Executive met on Tuesday afternoon. The group includes representatives from all sectors of our partnership, including councils, hospitals, clinical commissioning groups, Healthwatch and community organisations. The meeting was chaired by Rob Webster our CEO Partnership Lead.
Rob reported that Phil Corrigan, Chief Officer for NHS Leeds Clinical Commissioning Group and Rod Barnes, CEO for Yorkshire Ambulance Service have recently agreed to take on the joint role of senior responsible officers for the Urgent and Emergency Care Programme Board, following Nigel Gray’s retirement.
There was also an update on the completion of the Partnership’s Memorandum of Understanding which is being shared with Health and Wellbeing Boards, NHS Boards and governing bodies for approval. There was also an update on the development of the partnership’s new System Oversight Assurance Group, which will take an overview of progress with our priority programmes and how we are performing as a whole system. The first meeting will take place on 15 October. A review of the membership will take place in 12 months.
Martin Barkley (CEO for Mid-Yorkshire Hospitals), Richard Stubbs and Tony Jamieson from the Academic Health Science Network for Yorkshire and Humber updated the group on the innovation and improvement work and the work of the Partnership, including connecting with West Yorkshire Combined Authority. It’s essential we make the most of research to improve people’s lives and embrace all opportunities across our area (and beyond) if we are to secure investment. The wider social determinants of health, such as poor housing, can all benefit from this programme’s work. You can find out more by reading Richard’s blog last week here.
The Shadow Leadership Group met on Monday. This is a development programme for our future system leaders. It was chaired by Dr Matt Walsh. Matt updated the main System Leadership Group on the shadow group’s feedback on its agenda items and papers. This included the importance of values and behaviours in working together and the capacity to deliver innovation and improvement.
West Yorkshire and Harrogate Leadership Group
The wider leadership team met on Tuesday afternoon. Colleagues across the Partnership attended. The meeting is chaired by Rob Webster, our CEO Partnership Lead. Rob gave an update on the long term plan; winter planning; health and care financial pressures.
This week the Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock announced a £240m package of social care funding to ease pressure on services over the winter months. The funding, to be distributed through local councils, is intended to help free up beds when vulnerable or elderly patients are ready to leave hospital by helping councils provide care at home.
There was an overview from each of our sector leadership, starting with Rachael Loftus who gave an update on the work with our local authorities. Rachael works for the Partnership and her role is to work alongside our council partners. This involves supporting councillors (around 500 across our area) to help their understanding of our Partnership ambitions.
Sara Munro, CEO for Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and CEO Partnership Lead for the Mental Health Collaborative updated colleagues on progress being made. This included the new adult’s community eating disorder service – where the number of people supported closer to home has increased. This approach will be rolled out wider across the country. Other priorities discussed included suicide prevention and supporting people with learning disabilities to have a long and happy life in their communities.
Julian Hartley, Chair of the WYAAT Programme Executive and CEO of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and Matt Graham, the WYAAT Programme Director, gave an update on how the acute trusts in West Yorkshire and Harrogate are working together. Matt briefly described the programmes they are working. These include projects to enable staff to work flexibly across all the trusts, to develop shared IT services, to create a single medicines supply system and to improve clinical services such as orthopaedics and vascular surgery. In all the trusts are collaborating on 12 specific programmes, as well as a range of other activities, such as the recently agreed West Yorkshire Acceleration Zone to improve urgent and emergency care over the winter.
An update on the work of the Joint Committee of the CCGs was given by Helen Hirst, CEO for Bradford District and Craven CCGs. Helen talked about how commissioners are working together to improve people’s health, for example Healthy Hearts and stroke care. Please see the section above on the Joint Committee for more information.
Alastair Cartwright and Dawn Greaves work on our digital programme. Recent work includes developing a list of recommended schemes for the Health System-Led Investment in Provider Digitisation Fund that will further the digital plans for our Partnership. For example we expect to make further investments in hospital electronic patient records, and sharing information safely between health care organisations. This is all about improving IT to improve clinical processes and thus support people who access health care. The benefits are already being seen for example Yorkshire Ambulance Service make 900,000 decisions every year - going live with their integrated care records IT systems has made a big difference. The bids will be submitted by 5 October and we hope to hear back by the end of October.
Ian Holmes, our Partnership Director gave an update on our work as an integrated care system. This was followed by Anthony Kealy, NHS England who talked briefly about the work to bring NHS England and NHS Improvement more closely together. It’s important to note that there won’t be a new organisation. This will be a new operating model / approach at the centre. NHS E and NHS I currently work across four regions. Moving forward there will be seven regions. Our Partnership will be part of the North East and Yorkshire area.
There was also a presentation on the work of communications. We are working hard to further improve the health and care we provide to everyone living across the area. You can see examples of the positive difference we are making here. Please send on any case study examples to Karen.
Primary and Community Care Services Programme Board
The Board met on Wednesday. Chaired by Carol McKenna (Chief Officer for North Kirklees Clinical Commissioning Group and Greater Huddersfield Clinical Commissioning Group), members of the board received an update from work stream leads for workforce, improving access, primary care networks/communities; self-care and prevention.
West Yorkshire and Harrogate Cancer Alliance
Colleagues from our West Yorkshire and Harrogate Cancer Alliance met with national charity representatives this week to explore the challenges and issues around early diagnosis of, living with and beyond less common cancers. The visit had been organised through Cancer 52, an alliance of nearly 100 organisations working to address the inequalities which exist around these challenging diseases and improve outcomes for patients affected. Cancer52 members in attendance were Sarcoma UK, Myeloma UK, Teenage Cancer Trust, Pseudomyxoma Survivor, Target Ovarian Cancer and Pancreatic Cancer UK.
The charities were particularly interested in hearing more about the two WYH ACE (Accelerate, Co-ordinate, Evaluate) pilots looking at a multidisciplinary approach to early diagnosis around vague but concerning symptoms. Dr Rob Turner, Consultant Oncologist at St James’ Institute of Oncology in Leeds and Dr Sarah Forbes, GP and Associate Medical Director, Leeds CCG, presented on the Leeds pilot, and Dr Helena Rolfe, GP and Clinical Lead for Cancer, Airedale, Wharfedale and Craven CCG, shared information on the different approach being taken with colleagues in Airedale.
A wide-ranging discussion followed the presentations and more information will be made available on the Cancer Alliance website.
Click here to read more about the work of Cancer52.
Spotlight on Local Health Care Record Exemplar (LHCRE) programme
In June the Yorkshire and Humber region was awarded one of five exemplar positions on the NHS Local Health Care Record Exemplar (LHCRE) programme. The programme's ambitious objective it to integrate health and care records across the region with the aim of improving care by providing timely and relevant information to care professionals and citizens securely and safely.
Over the summer a small team called the Yorkshire and Humber Care Record Delivery Board and Team has been working with local representatives to understand how we will deliver this commitment and the Yorkshire and Humber Digital Care Board has met to oversee and govern the programme. Our final funding agreement is now with NHS England and Department of Health and Social Care for approval and they are aiming to release the monies to Yorkshire and Humber within the next few weeks.
The work undertaken by LHCRE will both impact and benefit all NHS and social care providers in the Humber Coast and Vale Health Partnership, South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Health Partnership, and West Yorkshire and Harrogate Health Partnership. Over the coming months we will communicate updates, events and workshops that you may want to be involved in but in the meantime if you would like to know more or engage with the Yorkshire and Humber Care Record Team please contact hnf-tr.
What’s happening next week?
- West Yorkshire Joint Health and Overview meet on Monday. They will receive an update from our Partnership on the stroke programme, finance and the memorandum of understanding.
- The six local place based planners (Bradford District and Craven; Calderdale, Harrogate, Leeds, Kirklees and Wakefield) meet on Tuesday.
- The West Yorkshire and Harrogate Personalised Care Demonstrator Steering Group meet on Wednesday.
- The Public Sector Communications Academy 2018 takes place in Birmingham on Wednesday.
- West Yorkshire and Harrogate Priority Programmes Group meet on Thursday.