Issue - meetings

Report of the Director of Public Health, which reviews progress against the overarching priorities identified in the Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy for Devon 2020-2025.  (To follow)

The Board noted the Report from the Director of Public Health, on the performance for the Board, which monitored the priorities identified in the Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy for Devon 2020-25.

The Report supplemented the full Devon Health and Wellbeing Outcomes Report for April 2023, which was available on the Devon Health and Wellbeing website.

The Report monitored the four Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy 2020-25 priorities, and included breakdowns by local authority, district and trends over time. These priorities areas included:

·        Create opportunities for all

·        Healthy safe, strong and sustainable communities

·        Focus on mental health

·        Maintain good health for all

The indicators below had been updated since the last report to the Board:

·       Alcohol-related Admissions (Narrow), 2021/22

·       Emergency Hospital Admissions for Intentional Self Harm, 2021/22

·       Injuries due to Falls, 2021/22

·       Key Stage 4 Performance, 2021/22

·       Rough Sleeping, 2022

·       Self-reported Wellbeing (Low Happiness Score %), 2021/22

Discussion and questions from the Board and Officers included:

-       Concern about some of the figures for Key Stage 4 performance especially for the Torridge area and what will be done to improve this. Work was being carried out with schools to address this, but it was agreed further analysis would be useful to understand what how better to address this.

-       Figures on admissions due to self-harm was also highlighted and recognised as concerning for the police as well as the health sector. It would be helpful to understand if a significant amount of these were due to people with complex issues being readmitted.

-       There was limited understanding with the data as this didn’t show complexities and other influencing factors. Coding challenges resulted in some cases where they fell into more than one code.

-       A request for more detailed information regarding the Torridge key stage 4 performance data to understand relating issues.

-       Rough sleeping information and further clarity about any linked factors such as alcohol and substance abuse. It was agreed that this could be looked at in more detail.

-       The work of CoLab in Exeter and One Northern Devon were highlighted as successful programmes aiming to address complex vulnerabilities through multi-agency collaboration.

-       Clarification on the statistics regarding admissions on self-harm. More detailed information was available from officers and could be provided.

-       Healthwatch Devon had produced a report about children and self-harm which could prove informative in assisting with prevention work.

RESOLVED that the Board note the Devon Health and Wellbeing Strategy Outcomes Report.