AGENDA ITEM No. 16 MEETING : TRUST BOARD DATE : 29 JANUARY 2008 REPORT OF : DEPUTY CHIEF EXECUTIVE Contact : Andy Roughton Regional Director C&W Officer Tel: 01792 562929 Email: [email protected] POWYS – UPDATE REPORT Purpose 1. To inform the Board of the current position within Powys. RECOMMENDED: That the report be received. Introduction 2. The Powys locality currently operates from 12 ambulance stations and at peak times aims to roster 12 ambulance resources at any one time. Appendix A shows the levels of activity and the distribution of activity over a 91 day period. Appendix B shows the average peak activity over a 50 week period by day of the week across Powys. The columns show planned crewing levels and the red line shows the rota required taking account of a three hour job cycle. Due to the geographical size of the area, low call volumes and spread of activity throughout the locality, compliance with response standards is challenging within the current traditional ambulance service delivery model employed (Appendix A). However, the rostered level of ambulance resources is sufficient to service the current call volume (Appendix B). 3. Recruitment and retention of staff has also been a challenge in the past, leaving the region with 4 vacancies and an additional requirement for 3 vacancies to increase the relief percentage to the Trust’s target of 26%. 4. Powys has no General Hospital and therefore average job cycle times are incurred of up to 3 hours when patients are conveyed and therefore the Trust’s inability to maintain suitable cover within the locality further compromises our ability to meet response standards. Some use is made of the current Minor Injuries Units provision but with limited success. 5. Although Powys is within the Central & West region, it is currently controlled by the South East region Performance 6. The Powys locality Cat ‘A’ performance year to date is 47.1 % which is consistent with previous years, although it should be noted that hours have been affected as a result of Agenda for Change. Media and Stakeholder Interest 7. Media and stakeholder interest within Powys is significant and therefore the Trust is very much under public scrutiny with regards to this area. Although much effort has been made to enhance relationships, especially with the Community Health Councils, Town Councils and local media there is great public emphasis on providing the same level of service within Powys as with other more urban localities. 8. A number of positive media articles have been written and the development of key stakeholder relationships continues. Progress 9. The Trust has established an Ambulance Partnership Board with Powys LHB to look at providing services differently and in partnership. Membership includes stakeholders such as Social Services, Shropdoc and the Community Health Councils. It is envisaged this will include joint use of resources to support both organisations service delivery targets and improve the clinical care provided to the Powys locality, a model of which could be rolled out to other rural areas if successful. 10. To address the vacancy and relief factor, the Central & West region has actively started the recruitment process for clinical staff and is also looking to fill the vacant North Powys Locality Ambulance Officer post. 11. A roster review is under way and the clinical desk within the emergency control room has provided additional support for the area. Work has already been identified which may enhance referral pathways within Powys by working with the Out of Hours provider, Shropdoc. Opportunities will also be taken to rollout further First Responder Schemes and a number of initiatives are currently being explored with regards to the implementation of Rapid Response Vehicles, within existing resources. Appendix A (Daytime activity over last 91 days) Machynlleth, Llanfyllin & Welshpool Llanfyllin Machynlleth Welshpool Llanidloes & Newtown Newtown Llanidloes Knighton, Llandrindod & Builth Wells Knighton Llandrindod Builth Wells Brecon, Bronllys & Crickhowell Bronllys Brecon Crickhowell Appendix B Monday 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Emergency Urgent Non-Urgent ROTA Rota Requirement 3-hour Cycle Tuesday 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Emergency Urgent Non-Urgent ROTA Rota Requirement 3-hour Cycle Wednesday 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 01234567891011121314151617181920212223 Emergency Urgent Non-Urgent ROTA Rota Requirement 3-hour Cycle Thursday 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 01234567891011121314151617181920212223 EMERGENCY Urgent Non-Urgent ROTA Rota Requirement 3-hour Cycle Friday 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Emergency Urgent Non-Urgent ROTA Rota Requirement 3-hour Cycle Saturday 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Emergency Urgent Non-Urgent ROTA Rota Requirement 3-hour Cycle Sunday 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Emergency Urgent Non-Urgent ROTA Rota Requirement 3-hour Cycle .