Trust Board Febuary 2010 - Sandwell & West Birmingham Hospitals

SWBTB (2/10) 045 (a)
Benefit Description
Promotion of normality
in birth
Option Scores
Maximum Score Do
Option 1 Option 2 Option 3
Possible Minimum
8 2 5 5 7
Maintain and improve
public confidence
8 3 4 2 4
Ensure that the future 4 0 3 1 4
workforce is fit for
purpose
Total Score 52 18 27 22 39
5.2 Consultation
Section 242 (1B) of the NHS Act 2006 came into force on 3 November 2008 and applies to SHA’s,
PCT’s and NHS trusts and NHS foundation trusts. It places a duty (formal legal requirement) on NHS
organisations to make arrangements to involve users, whether directly or through representatives in:
• planning the provision of services
• the development and consideration of proposals for changes in the way services are
provided, and
• decisions to be made affecting the operation of services.
The pre-consultation engagement activity and formal public consultation undertaken as part of the
medium term review of Maternity Services is in line with Section 242 (1B) of the NHS Act 2006.
In addition wide engagement (i.e. in addition to users also with key stakeholders and staff) is a
significant feature of good project management for reviews with the potential to involve service change.
The Project Steering Group recognises and supports this view and such engagement has been an
important feature of the pre-consultation phase of the review as well as the formal public consultation
phase.
The pre-consultation engagement phase involved work with service users regarding maternity services
through two sets of activities:
• People were asked to complete a questionnaire which focused on their preferences with
regard to the type of maternity services they would like to receive. Questionnaires were
completed by 544 people across Sandwell and West Birmingham, the large majority of
whom were women.
• Focus groups were held with mothers in order to ascertain the views and experiences of
mothers using maternity and newborn services available in Sandwell and West
Birmingham.
A number of significant issues were highlighted (these were reported to the September meeting of the
Board) and these were used to test and amend the short list of options and in particular resulted in the
inclusion of option 2 in the short list for public consultation.
As part of the pre-consultation engagement, three staff engagement workshops were held at an early
stage with frontline staff involved in providing maternity services within the Trust. These workshops
15