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PRIORITIES FOR ACTION 2007- 2008
Principal Targets and Priorities for the DHSSPS

The DHSSPS have laid out their key standards and targets for the year in their Priorites for Action document which will be subject to monitoring throughout the coming year. The key targets are as follows:

Improving health and well-being

Smoking prevalence: by March 2008, smoking prevalence by Board area should be reduced by 7% across Northern Ireland to 24%.

Safer, better quality services

Health care associated infection: by May 2007, Trusts must submit to the Department, for approval and monitoring, Infection Reduction Plans that include Trust-specific targets for prevention and control of health care associated infection. Progress in meeting these targets must be robustly monitored and reported monthly by the Infection Prevention and Control lead to the Trust Board.

Reductions in Hospital Waiting Times

i	Elective care (consultant-led): by March 2008, no patient should wait longer than 13 weeks for a first outpatient appointment, 13 weeks for a diagnostic test, and 21 weeks for inpatient or day case treatment.
ii	Elective care (AHP): by May 2007, with a view to improving access to AHP services, Boards and Trusts must submit to the Department, for approval and monitoring, proposed targets and associated reform plans for March 2008 and beyond.
iii	Cancer: by March 2008, at least 98% of patients diagnosed with cancer should commence treatment within 31 days of the decision to treat, and at least 75% of patients urgently referred with a suspected cancer should begin their first definitive treatment within 62 days (increasing to 95% by March 2009).

Significant Improvements in Emergency Care

i	A&E: from April 2007, no patient should wait longer than 12 hours in A&E and, by March 2008, 95% of patients who attend A&E should be either treated and discharged home, or admitted within four hours of their arrival in the department.
ii	Fractures: by March 2008, at least 75% of patients should, where clinically appropriate, wait no longer than 48 hours for inpatient fracture treatment (increasing to 98% by March 2009).
iii	Ambulance services: for 2007-08, the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service should respond to an average of 65% of Category A (life-threatening) calls within eight minutes, with performance improving to 70% for the month of March 2008.

Fully Integrated Care and Support in the Community

i	Timely discharge: from April 2007, 50% of complex discharges from an acute setting should take place within 72 hours of the patient’s being declared medically fit, rising to 100% by March 2008. From April 2007, all other discharges should take place within 12 hours, reducing to six hours by March 2008.
ii	Primary care access: from April 2007, Boards should ensure that all patients have 48-hour access to a GP or other appropriate practice-based primary care practitioner. In cases where the patient has an acute condition (including exacerbation of an existing condition), access must be within 24 hours.
iii	Elderly: by March 2008, older people with continuing care needs should wait no longer than eight weeks for assessment to be completed and should have the main components of their care needs met within a further 12 weeks.

Improvements in Children’s Services

Children: by March 2008, an additional 175 foster carers (as compared to the March 2006 total) should be in place across Northern Ireland.

Better Mental Health and Learning Disability Services

Mental health: by July 2007, with a view to improving regional access to mental health services on foot of the Bamford Review, Boards and Trusts should submit to the Department, for approval and monitoring, proposed targets and associated reform plans for improving the response to, and support for, people with mental health problems presenting at primary care level.

Learning Disability: by March 2008, Boards and Trusts should have resettled 40 people currently being cared for in learning disability hospitals to appropriate places in the community. In addition, Boards and Trusts should ensure that, from April 2007, all patients admitted for assessment and treatment are discharged when treatment is complete, according to the care plan created for each new patient on admission.

Effective financial control and improved efficiency

Finance: the Department and all HPSS organisations should live within the resources allocated and achieve financial balance.

Reforming the Workforce

Productivity: by May 2007, Trusts must submit to the Department, for approval and monitoring, productivity improvement plans to meet the requirements set out in the Department's guidance on HPSS productivity.

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Eastern Health and Social Services Council, 1st Floor, Lesley House, 25-27 Wellington Place, Belfast, BT1 6GQ
Freephone: 0800 917 0222
Fax: (028) 9032 1750
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E-mail:ecouncil@ehssc.n-i.nhs.uk