Chief Executive Bulletin 11- 17 May 2001 Issue 66

Go back to referring page

Main Page

Hard copy versions of these publications can be ordered from the NHS Responseline 08701 555 455. Contents: NHS interest 1. HSC 2001/012 Cancer Waiting Times: Achieving the NHS Cancer Plan Waiting Times Targets 2. Local Capital Modernisation Fund 3. National Clinical Assessment Authority Starts Work NHS and Social Care interest 4. HSC 2001/011 LAC (2001)16 Care Standards Act 2000 - Transition Arrangements for the Creation of The National Care Standards Commission 5. Bereavement 6. Safety Notice - MDA SN2001(15) Anaesthetic Machines: Prevention of Hypoxic Gas Mixtures Social Care interest 7. Local Authority Circular LAC(2001)15 Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000: Grant Conditions for Use of Ring-Fenced Funds 8. Local Authority Circular LASSL(2001)2 The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) and complaints about the functioning of child protection conferences 9. CI(2001)7 Inspection of Best Value Reviews in Social Services 10. Preserved Rights: Amendment to Regulations Governing Circumstances in Which Councils Can Provide Financial Support 11. Information for Social Care   NHS interest 1. HSC 2001/012 Cancer Waiting Times: Achieving the NHS Cancer Plan Waiting Times Targets The NHS Cancer Plan set new cancer waiting time targets to be rolled out over the next 5 years. Specific cancer waiting times targets have been set for 2001: Maximum one month wait from urgent GP referral to treatment guaranteed for children's and testicular cancers and acute leukaemia Maximum one month wait from diagnosis to treatment for breast cancer HSC 2001/012 focuses on the action that needs to be taken to achieve full implementation of the 2001 targets by 31 December by : setting out the definitions of the new cancer waiting times targets; setting out the timescales and milestones for delivery of the NHS Cancer Plan targets for 2001; setting out action necessary for Cancer Networks - Health Authorities, NHS Trusts and Primary Care - to achieve and monitor the 2001 targets including an examination of current waiting times, systems in place to address potential bottlenecks during diagnosis and treatment, contingency planning arrangments across the cancer network and rapid referral arrangements between hospitals. Circular Ref. 23903. Hard copies available.   Back to Top 2. Local Capital Modernisation Fund On the 6th May 2001, the Secretary of State announced the allocation of £105m for the Local Capital Modernisation Fund. Each of the 190 acute Trusts in England will receive between £100,000 and £1m depending on the number of consultants it employees. The Medical Director and Director of Nurses at each Trust will decide how the money from the Fund is spent. Detailed Guidance Back to Top 3. National Clinical Assessment Authority Starts Work The National Clinical Assessment Authority (NCAA) is a special health authority set up as one of the central elements of the NHS's work on quality. It began work in April at its new headquarters in Vauxhall, London. The Authority's aim is to provide a support service to health authorities and hospital and community trusts who are faced with concerns over the performance of individual doctors that cannot be resolved locally. The Authority will deal with concerns about doctors in difficulty by taking referrals and carrying out targeted assessments where necessary. The NCAA has begun a thorough consultation process so that the processes and procedures it develops are fair, robust, transparent and effective. Detailed guidance on the role of the Authority will be published in the autumn. This will include advice on how, and under what circumstances, health authorities and trusts will be able to refer a doctor to the NCAA for assessment. The NCAA has now published an information sheet for the NHS For further information contact Kate Cinamon, Director of Communications at the National Clinical Assessment Authority on 020 7273 0848/0850. E-mail kcinamon@ncaa.nhs.uk Back to Top NHS / Social Care interest 4. HSC 2001/011 LAC (2001)16 Care Standards Act 2000 - Transition Arrangements for the Creation of The National Care Standards Commission This Circular sets out the tasks to be completed by Local Authorities and Health Authorities during 2001/02 in order to transfer their regulatory services to the National Care Standards Commission. Circular Transition plan Ref. HSC/LAC 23893, Transition Plan 23894. Back to Top 5. Bereavement The Chief Medical Officer's recommendations following the Alder Hey Inquiry require NHS Trusts to be reminded of the need to provide bereavement counselling services and also to ensure appropriate training is provided for those staff involved in this service. A website was launched on 30th April to provide the Departmental policy guidance circulars on Patient's Who Die in Hospital. The website is intended to develop over time to include facilities to e-mail queries to the Department of Health and to provide links to other useful sites which deal with Bereavement issues. The guidance and website can be found at www.doh.gov.uk/bereavement/index.htm Back to Top 6. Safety Notice - MDA SN2001(15) Anaesthetic Machines: Prevention of Hypoxic Gas Mixtures This Safety Notice was issued on 4 May to NHS Trust, and Health Authority Chief Executives. As usual it was also issued to Liaison Officers of Trusts and Health Authorities for action and for onward distribution as specified in the Notice. Electronic version of SN 2001 (15) can be found at: www.medical-devices.gov.uk/sn2001(15).htm For further information on the role and nomination of Liaison Officers e-mail us at: bs@medical-devices.gov.uk http://www.medical-devices.gov.uk Back to Top Social Care Interest 7. Local Authority Circular LAC(2001)15 Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000: Grant Conditions for Use of Ring-Fenced Funds On 11 May the Department of Health published LAC(2001)15 which confirms councils' 2001/02 allocation of funds to implement the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000 and sets out the grant conditions for use of those funds. Circular Ref. 23919. Back to Top 8. Local Authority Circular LASSL(2001)2 The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) and complaints about the functioning of child protection conferences On 14 May the Department of Health published LASSL(2001)2 which contains guidance issued under Section 7 of the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970, and supplements the Working Together to Safeguard Children child protection guidance. The LASSL has been issued to reflect the commencement of CAFCASS and in response to requests for clarification of the procedure for dealing with complaints from parents/carers and, on occasion, children about the functioning of child protection conferences. Circular Ref. 23890. Back to Top 9. CI(2001)7 Inspection of Best Value Reviews in Social Services Social Services Inspectorate is the Best Value inspectorate for social services and has made a commitment that as far as possible it would include Best Value review inspections within their existing work. The letter explains how they are working in this area. http://www.doh.gov.uk/publications/coinh.html Ref. 23866. Back to Top 10. Preserved Rights: Amendment to Regulations Governing Circumstances in Which Councils Can Provide Financial Support As announced in paragraph 2.32 of The NHS Plan: The Government's response to the Royal Commission on Long Term Care, councils are being given new powers to help some people with preserved rights to pay their care home fees. Statutory Instrument 2001 No. 1859, which was laid before Parliament on 11 May and comes into force on 1 June, amends Regulations 7 and 9 of the Residential Accommodation (Relevant Premises, Ordinary Residence and Exemptions) Regulations 1993. The new regulations allow councils to support in their existing residential care or nursing home those people with preserved rights who face eviction but who can, at present, be supported only in a different care home. Further guidance will be issued to councils about the change over the next few weeks. In the meantime, more information can be obtained from Roger Pettit, Social Care Group: tel. 020-7972 4723. Back to Top 11. Information for Social Care A revision of the framework document Information for Social Care, an initiative under the Social Care Quality Programme, is now available on the Department of Health website at http://www.doh.gov.uk/scg/information.htm. Information for Social Care provides a practical toolkit for those responsible for collecting and using management information, including details of actions for local authorities and others, with key dates. A hard copy of the executive summary will be sent to Chief Executives and Directors of Social Services shortly. LAC (2001)9 announced a capital grant of £16,666 for improving information management in social services, and authorities were asked to submit local information strategies and capital investment plans to the Department of Health by 1 October 2001. Guidance on the plans, known as Local Information Plans, will be issued in the next few days at the above web address. The Information for Social Care team is currently drawing up a list of contacts in local authorities who would act as a focal point within each authority for the initiative. We would be grateful if you would send the name and email address of a nominated contact point for your authority, to info.sc@doh.gsi.gov.uk. Back to Top The documents in this bulletin are Crown copyright but may be reproduced by NHS and Local Authority staff without formal permission or charge for personal or in-house use - ©2001 Back to Chief Executive's Bulletin Home Page

Information

Help

Feedback

Search

Published by the NHS Executive
© Crown Copyright 2001
This page last updated 17 May 2001