SaHF DMBC Volume 1 Edition 1.1.pdf - Shaping a healthier future

7.25.1 London Health Programmes clinical standards
The London Health Programme identifies the health needs of Londoners and redesign NHS
services to improve the way healthcare is delivered in the capital. They work with London‟s
commissioners to transform frontline services and drive up standards in care quality. In
consultation with patients, clinicians and GPs, we have developed new ways of delivering
care that is expected to save thousands of lives, improve the health of our population and
deliver efficient healthcare services. The Chair of the CIG and other CIG members have
been closely involved in the design of new standards for Paediatric Emergency Standards.
These standards (published early 2013) form a core part of the recommendations of the
Group. Whilst they ostensibly deal with emergency service standards they also touch upon
the standards for Paediatric inpatients.
To implement all these standards will require working with existing providers, commissioners
and networks. It is recommended that a Paediatric Network, similar to the NW London
Maternity Network, is set up to take this forward through implementation. This co-working will
need to be extended to ensure there is adequate safe and high quality provision of the
management of High Dependency children outside of the PICU setting, children with acute
mental health problems who require inpatient care, and ensuring that there are
arrangements for all children requiring a detailed safeguarding examination and assessment.
7.25.2 Neonatal standards
The CIG has adopted the same definitions for type of care and neonatal unit used in the
British Association of Perinatal Medicines (BAPM) 2010 and 2011 standards , these and the
NHS Commissioning Board National Service Specification for Neonatal Critical Care
Services will help inform the decision on the disposition of the Neonatal units in NW London.
Key references for further detail are:
1. Toolkit for High-Quality Neonatal Service. Department of Health. (2009)
2. Service Standards for Hospitals Providing Neonatal Care (3 rd Edition). British
Association of Perinatal Medicine (2010)
3. Quality standard for specialist neonatal care. National Institute for Clinical Excellence
(NICE) (2010)
4. NHS Commissioning Board National Service Specification for Neonatal Critical Care
Services 2013/14.
The Toolkit for High Quality Neonatal Services describes networks as being comprised of
three types of unit:
Special Care Units (SCU): These provide special care for their own local population. They
also provide, by agreement with their neonatal network, some high dependency services.
Local Neonatal Units (LNU): These provide special care and high dependency care and a
restricted volume of intensive care (as agreed locally) and would expect to transfer babies
who require complex or longer-term intensive care to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU): These are larger intensive care units that provide the
whole range of medical (and sometimes surgical) neonatal care for their local population and
additional care for babies and their families referred from the neonatal network in which they
are based, and also from other networks when necessary to deal with peaks of demand or
requests for specialist care not available elsewhere. Many will be sited within perinatal
7c. Work of the Paediatric CIG 189