Report of Director of Performance, County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust on behalf of County Durham and Darlington LADB

The Director of Performance, County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust submitted a report (previously circulated) on behalf of County Durham and Darlington LADB, updating Members on the System’s Winter Plan 2020/21.

The submitted report stated that members of County Durham and Darlington LABD had been compiling the System Winter Plan 2020/21 for the last few months; that the plan was based on each organisations recovery and reset plans following the first wave of COVID-19; contains a combination of mitigations; and that work was ongoing to develop further mitigations and mutual aid responses across the ICP and ICS footprints, working with NHS England and the North East Commissioning Support Unit.

The report outlined the key objectives of the winter plan; reference was made to the initiatives in place to manage and mitigate anticipated system pressure which included optimising capacity, optimising the uptake of flu vaccination, task and finish group to roll out the latest discharge practice guidance; and support packages for the health and wellbeing of staff and members of the public.

Details were provided of the key risks; the plan aimed to mitigate these risks should they materialise at unprecedented levels; and the escalation and regional oversight processes in place were outlined.

Discussion ensued on the process of discharging COVID patients from the hospital.

RESOLVED – (a) That the plan be received.

(b) That the increased levels of risk in relation to the winter period, given the combination of winter pressures and COVID, be noted.

(c) That the ongoing work to agree mutual aid responses across the North East and Cumbria Integrated Care System (ICS), and that the rapid response of LADB partners to the release of new guidance, be noted.

REASON – To assure the Board that a System Winter Plan has been put in place to protect services over the winter period and that there is robust daily oversight.