Public Health Intelligence Update: Recent developments and emerging issues in North West

1. Public Health Intelligence Update: Recent developments and emerging issues in North West NW Public Health TEG Tuesday 19th April 2011

2. Purpose of presentation • Describe work of Public Health England Information and Intelligence (I&I) Working Group • Update TEG on progress with PHI transition plans in Cheshire and Merseyside, Cumbria, Greater Manchester and Lancashire • Highlight recent developments and outstanding issues of concern • Agree how best to keep TEG engaged and informed of progress

3. Healthy Lives, Healthy People • “Public Health England offers a unique opportunity to draw together the existing complex information, intelligence and surveillance functions performed by multiple organisations into a more coherent form and to make evidence more easily available to those who will use it, in a form that makes it most likely to be used.” • ”In the coming year, the Department will focus on drawing together existing public health I&I functions (e.g. PHOs, cancer registries, and relevant parts of the HPA), working to eliminate gaps and overlaps and to develop the specialist workforce required…”

4. Public Health England Information and Intelligence (I&I) Working Group • Responsibility of the Transition Managing Director of Public Health England and sits within the programme of work for the PHE Transition Team (PHETT) • Chaired by John Newton (RDPH, South Central SHA) • Role includes: • Designing the future state of the I&I function within PHE • Overseeing transition of existing I&I functions and, where appropriate, workforce, into PHE during 2011/12; and • Ensuring essential functions are protected during 2011/12 through transition arrangements • Reports to the PHE Programme Board and supported by secretariat from the I&I team in PHE-TT

5. I&I Working Group: Phase 1 workstreams Workstream 1: PHOs and NDTMS Lead: Brian Ferguson Support: PHO team Workstream 6: Child health Lead: Lucy Holdstock Support: TBC Workstream 2: Cancer (inc. screening) Lead: Chris Carrigan Support: TBC Workstream 7: National data sources Lead: Parul Desai Support: TBC Workstream 3: HPA and surveillance Lead: Mike Catchpole Support: TBC Workstream 8: Screening QA Lead: Anne Mackie Support: TBC Workstream 4: Interface with LG/NHS Lead: Chris Bentley Support: Robert Kyffin Workstream 9: Informatics Lead: Malcolm Roxburgh Support: Sam Organ Workstream 5: DH policy Lead: John Newton Support: Ahn Tran

6. I&I Working Group: Work programme for 2011/12 • Nine workstream leads charged with: • Current state: ensure business continuity (and begin transition) in 11/12; • Future state: Identify ongoing & new functions for PHE from 12/13; • Transition: set out the mechanisms for moving to future state; and • Efficiencies: identify new and joint ways of working. • I&I Working Group to: • Agree and apply principles for prioritising across different workstreams; • Identify linkages, synergies and gaps across the workstreams; and • Finalise list of functions and delivery mechanisms/ locations, with costs estimates, for the future state. Transition planning/management

7. Recap of local position • Around two thirds of PHI capacity in NW based in local PCTs with a further third in regional/sub-regional bodies (incl. GO-NW and NWPHO) • Recent mapping exercise by NWPHO (Nov 2010) suggests there has been a 50% reduction in the number of public health analysts in the NW - particularly at Grades 6 & 7 • Different approaches to tackling PHI issues during transition being developed across the NW region • Continuing uncertainty regarding long term future of NWPHO

8. North West Public Health Observatory (NWPHO) • Core funding agreed for PHOs for 2011/12 • PHOs accountable to DH for delivery of a national public health intelligence work programme • NWPHO responsible for delivery of national alcohol and drugs intelligence, in additional to dental health and NDTMS contracts • PHOs engaged in transition work relating to the transfer of PHO functions to Public Health England • PHOs will continue to deliver locally commissioned work in 2011/12

9. Cheshire and Merseyside • Discussion paper presented to Cheshire and Merseyside DsPH in March 2011 • Three options identified • Creation of a virtual hub and spokes model coordinated by ChaMPs • Establishment of a centralised Public Health Intelligence Unit for Cheshire and Merseyside • Establishment of 2 Public Health Intelligence Units (1 Greater Merseyside and 1 Cheshire) • Further discussions on public health intelligence function underway. Initial focus on collaborative arrangements for sharing evidence base and examples of good practice.

10. Cumbria • Merged public health intelligence and information function within the PCT • In-depth public health intelligence support for specific projects sourced from NWPHO • Virtual Cumbria Observatory centred on shared website with Cumbria County Council • Seeking to achieve strong integration with emerging GP consortia via working links with 6 locality groups (‘hubs’)

11. Greater Manchester Public Health Intelligence Programme • Report of Phase 1 of project presented to Greater Manchester DsPH meeting on 4th March 2011 • Accepted recommendation to move towards a hub and spokes model of PHI across GM by April 2012 • Phase 2 work programme being lead by Head of Health Intelligence at NHS Manchester and hosted by GM Public Health Practice Unit • New PHI ‘project delivery group’ being established to ensure the delivery of the different workstreams, provide regular feedback on developments in PHI at grass roots level and provide an early warning of any emerging issues that need to be addressed

12. Intelligence for Healthy Lancashire Group • Proposal to establish a single Lancashire Public Health Intelligence Unit (Intelligence for Healthy Lancashire Team) agreed in principle by DsPH in January 2011 • Initially will bring together public health intelligence staff from 3 Lancashire PCTs but seeks to widen this to include county-wide analysts from 1st April 2012 • Primary focus likely to be on providing a range of core public health intelligence outputs • Links to an existing data repository facility for PH and NHS data at CL CBS

13. Common issues • Relationship between I&I function in Public Health England and local PHI teams • Access to data: • National repository to allow local benchmarking against national comparators • Continuity of historic and existing data sets and data flows from which to draw on local level • Potential loss of outputs produced by local PHOs, e.g. small area data, prevalence modelling, GP practice profiles, standard analytical tools and templates etc. • Development of Codes of Practice and quality standards for commercial intelligence providers • Continuing Professional Development

14. Recent developments – Data Sharing • New government amendments in relation to data sharing will allow the General Registrar Office (GRO) and the Office of National Statistics (ONS) to provide vital events and statistical data to local authorities • Aim is to clarify roles and responsibilities of the GRO and ONS and ensure that DsPH in LAs can access the same information as they are currently able to do as a PCT employee • New arrangements being made for local registrars to pass births and deaths data onto local authorities, e.g. to support work around child protection and health visiting

15. Acknowledgements • Clare Perkins (Deputy Director, NWPHO) • James Mechan (Public Health Specialist (Intelligence), NHS Central Lancashire) • Martin Ewin (Public Health Intelligence Team Leader, NHS Cumbria) • Paul Langton (Public Health Intelligence Manager, NHS Knowsley / Knowsley MBC)