Community Health Partnership
The Falkirk Community Health Partnership (CHP) is an important part of the NHS Forth Valley Healthcare Strategy and an important cornerstone of Community Planning. A central tenet of this strategy is that "what can be provided safely in primary care will be provided in primary care".
In January 2003, after extensive public and stakeholder consultation, the NHS Board decided to provide acute services on one site. The establishment of a new Acute Hospital in Larbert by 2009 is a key element of the Strategy along with enhanced community hospitals and primary care services. Another element of the Health Care Strategy is to develop a Falkirk Community Hospital. The new hospital is a very exciting development for the community and we look forward to being able to provide high-quality patient centred services from a state-of-the-art facility.
Partnership direction
In 2003 the Scottish Executive White Paper “Partnership for Care” outlined the direction for the Health Service in Scotland and laid strong emphasis on partnership, integration and service re-design. It indicated that these principles would be at the heart of the development of new Community Health Partnerships (CHPs), providing a central role for primary healthcare teams to work in new ways with hospital services and at a community level with local authorities.
The Falkirk CHP has been operational from 1 April 2005 and replaced the previous Local Healthcare Co-operative. The CHP Committee includes representation from the health sector, the Council, the voluntary sector and local members of the public.
Aims and priorities
The Community Health Partnership and the Health Theme Group have a number of shared agendas. One of the challenges ahead is determining how these two groups work together so that we have added value and seamless service delivery. Health and Social Care Services will be co-ordinated in relation to Community Care Services, Joint Future, Joint Commissioning, Integrated Mental Health Services, Integrated Learning Disability Services and Integrated Children’s Services.
Health and Social Care services have worked together for a number of years to develop a shared assessment process that avoids duplication and repeated requests for information. Consistent with the principles of joint resourcing and joint management, the Single Shared Assessment helps to support professionals and managers in decisions regarding the use of resources and the planning of services, through working together.
A further key priority to the Theme Group is ensuring equity of access to health care services to all individuals living within Falkirk Council area, which could include GP services, dental services, pharmacy and acute care services. It is important that the partners work together to ensure that individuals have access to a range of services that suit particular circumstances.
Whilst it is important that individuals have access to appropriate services when they are ill, we want to focus further on preventing individuals from experiencing poor health. The health of the people of our area is improving, although it lags behind most of the rest of the UK. There is still a significant difference between the health of people living in the most affluent and the most deprived areas. Smoking and the effects of smoking remain the single greatest cause of ill health in the area.
Challenges ahead
We recognise that there are a number of significant challenges that need to be addressed. The premature death rate for the area as a whole is above the Scottish and Forth Valley average; the Scottish Rate is always 100.
Premature death rates
|
Indicator
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Falkirk Council
SMR
|
Forth Valley
SMR
|
|
Lung Cancer
|
119
|
96
|
|
Breast Cancer
|
113
|
100
|
|
Heart Disease
|
106
|
93
|
|
Stroke
|
113
|
109
|
The standardised mortality rate (SMR) is an average; this rate varies significantly across the Council area. Our most deprived communities are usually those with the highest standardised mortality rates and the poorest health. The breast-feeding rate for the area is the second lowest in Scotland. It is our aim to reduce these inequalities and ensure that everyone has the opportunity to reach their full potential and not be disadvantaged as a result of poor health.
The key priorities for health improvement are:
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promoting physical activity
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promoting healthy eating
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improving diet
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reducing the harmful use of tobacco, alcohol and illegal drugs
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promoting community wellbeing.
The key target groups that presently have major inequalities in health are the socially deprived populations, children and young people, and the homeless. Making a real impact on the health of the communities requires a community development approach, the raising of self-esteem and a sense of ownership amongst individuals. This emphasises the need for partnership working across all agencies.
In the years ahead work will continue to ensure that the Joint Health Improvement Planning process will evolve to become robust and comprehensive to address health improvement issues for individuals and our community as a whole.