Joint Health Scrutiny Committees
This publication addresses different stages of the development of joint health OSCs from the legislative and constitutional framework, to planning ahead with health partners and neighbours, to carrying out joint health scrutiny reviews and tackling consul
This publication focuses on the opportunities and challenges presented by joint health scrutiny. Health OSCs of social services authorities can choose to form joint health OSCs to consider health issues that cross boundaries but they must form joint health OSCs to respond to consultations from the NHS about proposals for developments or variations in health services (affecting people in more than one local authority area) that relevant health OSCs consider to be. It is important that health OSCs work together to bring the views of their communities into the processes for planning and delivering health services and to work in partnership with the NHS to discuss plans for substantial changes at an early stage. It is likely that all health OSCs and NHS bodies will, sooner or later, be involved with a joint health OSC and it is crucial that everyone considers how to make joint health scrutiny arrangements work.
The government's vision for patient and public involvement in the planning and delivery of healthcare is to move away from the traditional model of formal consultation that takes place at the end of a period of internal reflection within the NHS, towards a model where patients, the public and their democratically elected representatives are involved from an early stage in thinking about the development of services.
This publication adopts a practical approach. Different stages of the development of joint health OSCs are considered from the legislative and constitutional framework, to planning ahead with health partners and neighbours, to carrying out joint health scrutiny reviews and tackling consultations from the NHS. Wherever possible practical examples are used and contact details given so that readers can find out more about existing practice. Inevitably the contact details will change over time.