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RPBs are required to promote the integration of services, prioritising those for older people with complex needs and long-term conditions, including dementia; people with learning disabilities; carers; families through Integrated Family Support Services; and children with complex needs due to disability or illness. Implicit in this is the requirement to remodel services to meet the needs of the population and to meet the aspirations of the Act. Merely doing more of the same in a more joined up way is unlikely to deliver the wellbeing outcomes which underpin the legislation.
Key to achieving this will be RPBs understanding the needs of their population, assessing the effectiveness of current services and identifying where further change and improvement is needed. Part 2 of the Act requires that local authorities and LHBs must jointly carry out an assessment of the needs for care and support, and the support needs of carers in the local authority’s (LA’s) area. The assessment must identify:
• Theextenttowhichthoseneedsarenotbeingmet
• Therangeandlevelofservicesrequiredtomeetthoseneeds
• Therangeandlevelofservicesrequiredtodeliverthepreventativeservicesrequired
in section 15 of the Act; and
• HowtheseserviceswillbedeliveredthroughthemediumofWelsh
In common with areas covered by the other six LHBs in Wales, partners in West Wales have established a RPB which brings together senior representatives of the three local authorities (Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire County Councils), Hywel Dda University Health Board, the third and independent sectors and user and carer representatives. The RPB builds on strong foundations of collaborative working across health and social care in West Wales, in relation to areas such as intermediate care, integrated family support, adoption, substance misuse, shared lives for adults and safeguarding. Building on these, it has agreed initially the following strategic priorities, underpinned by a commitment to improving engagement with citizens and developing a workforce equipped to meet future challenges:
• Integratedcommissioningofolderpeople’sservices
• Pooledbudgets
• Information,AdviceandAssistance/prevention
• ImplementationoftheWalesCommunityCareInformationSystem(WCCIS);and • Integrationofmentalhealthandlearningdisabilityservices
These priorities complement and support a wider range of activity underway across the region to reshape services and improve the way in which they are commissioned and delivered. The Population Assessment has provided an invaluable further ‘test’ of both the Board’s priorities and the wider activity and these will be refined as necessary in light of its findings. During 2017 the RPB will oversee the development of a comprehensive combined Area Plan linked to internal agency plans and setting out
West Wales Population Assessment March 2017 Introduction