Major service change reports
The guidance followed in publishing this report has since been superseded by the Planning with People guidance
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde's Consultation on Changes to Inpatient Rehabilitation Services in East Glasgow and the Possible Closure of Lightburn Hospital
This report sets out our assessment of whether NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde's process for involving local people in the development of proposals for service change affecting Lightburn Hospital followed Scottish Government guidance, which requires that NHS boards seek, listen to and act on the views of potentially affected people and communities when proposing changes to services.
Based on the evidence outlined in this report, our view is that NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has partially followed the national guidance set out by the Scottish Government.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde used a range of methods during its engagement and consultation process, including one-to-one interviews; focus groups; meetings with local community groups; public meetings; full and summary consultation papers; distribution of consultation materials to public libraries, local faith groups, community councils and other local groups; and information on its website. Local people generally found the board's information to be in plain language and easy to understand.
The 2 areas where NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has not yet demonstrated compliance with the guidance relate to: equality and diversity impact assessment, and transport needs assessment and how these have both impacted on the proposals for patients and the public.
Learning Points
We identified a number of learning points from this engagement and consultation, which are outlined in our report. For example, NHS boards should avoid, where possible, carrying out engagement and consultation on service change during the main holiday periods. NHS staff should also consider the full range of potential stakeholders at the earliest stage in service change.