Agenda and draft minutes

Apologies were received from Councillors Gareth Davies, Hugh Irving, Pat Jones, Christine Marston and Melvyn Mile.

Councillors Joan Butterfield and Emrys Wynne declared a personal interest with respect of the business under discussion at the meeting.

No urgent item notifications had been received.

To discuss with representatives from the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board the findings of the Health and Social Care Advisory Service’s (HASCAS) investigation (and other associated investigations) into the care and treatment provided on the Tawelfan Ward at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd, including the lessons learnt and the Board’s future plans for safeguarding vulnerable individuals and delivering dementia services.

Links to the HASCAS report:

Executive Summary:  http://www.wales.nhs.uk/sitesplus/861/opendoc/324119

Full report:  http://www.wales.nhs.uk/sitesplus/861/opendoc/324118

The Chair welcomed the representatives from the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) to the meeting for the discussion.

Members’ were reminded of the findings of the Health and Social Care Advisory Service’s (HASCAS) investigation and other associated investigations into the care and treatment provided at the Tawelfan Ward at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd, links to which had been included on the agenda for the meeting.  A copy of the eight main questions which the Committee had prepared at an earlier meeting had been shared with Health Board officials in advance of the meeting to enable them to provide comprehensive replies to them at the meeting.  Earlier on the day of the meeting the Health Board had provided the Committee with links to a number of reports discussed at Health Board meetings relating to the findings of the reviews, these had been public documents for some time and members would most probably be familiar with their contents.

Health Board officials confirmed that they would answer members’ questions as comprehensively as possible during the meeting and also undertook to provide written answers to the questions raised.

Prior to answering the Committee’s questions BCUHB representatives provided some background and context to the investigations commissioned with respect of Tawelfan.  They confirmed that the process had been protracted due to the number of investigations being undertaken.  There had been two HASCAS investigations, one overarching investigation and one specifically for affected families.  The latter was continuing.  As part of this review 108 individual patient reports had been prepared and reviewed.  This work included working with families, if family members existed and were willing to work with the reviewers.  If evidence of harm to the patient was found set national procedures were followed to investigate those cases.  If required reviewers had met with family members on a number of occasions as part of the review process.  The reviews were undertaken at a pace that was appropriate to the family and included aspects which the family felt were important to them.  In some cases representatives from the Community Health Council (CHC) and/or advocates of the family’s choice had been present.

Officers advised that following publication of HASCAS and Ockenden reports it was important that the Health Board responded appropriately to them.  As part of its response the Board had established two high level boards to move things forward and realise improvements.  These were:

·         The Improvement Group (chaired by the Director of Nursing); and

·         The Stakeholder Group

both of which were overseen by the Health Board, were examining matters such as improving staff recruitment, improvements to buildings and facilities, and raising dementia awareness amongst staff across the Health Board.

Responding to the Committee’s questions Health Board officials:

·         advised that costs associated with the closure of the ward were minimal and the building was maintained as part of the hospital’s own maintenance programme.  The major cost associated with the closure of the Tawelfan ward lay with the expenditure incurred in placing some patients on a temporary basis in appropriate care settings outside of the Health Board’s area.  In addition to being costly such placements were not ideal for the patient or their family;

·         confirmed that discussions were currently underway with the Welsh Government’s Estates Team regarding redesigning the former Tawelfan ward building as part of wider proposals to significantly redesign the Ablett Unit.  These plans, which included the provision of a fit for purpose dementia-friendly building, did not propose to use the Tawelfan Ward for clinicial purposes in future.  More information on these proposals should be available by Christmas 2018, with the redesigned accommodation hopefully being completed within three years;  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.