New report explores priorities for health and social care integration
- Area of Work: Policy and Research
- Type: News Item
- Published: 1st March 2024
The report focuses on Health and Social Care Partnerships’ (HSCPs) strategic plans and annual reports.
The ALLIANCE Integration and Academy Team has published a new report looking at Health and Social Care Partnerships’ (HSCPs) strategic plans and annual reports.
Based on a review of a sample of HSCP’s strategic plans and annual reports, this report provides a snapshot of their key priorities for the near and medium-term future.
Every few years, each local Partnership produces its own plan for how it will continue to progress the integration of health and community services. We looked at the plans for 8 out of 31 HSCPs across Scotland to see what the common themes were across their priorities.
We found that key themes Partnerships are focusing on right now are:
- Continuing to shift focus on early intervention and prevention by strengthening community supports and services. This theme brings together a range of plans around supporting self management, tackling health inequalities, promoting good mental and physical health, family support and reducing harms from drug and alcohol use.
- Increasing meaningful involvement of people with lived experience of accessing services by developing and implementing robust engagement and participation plans. Several Partnerships are working toward being able to co-produce services and supports with people with lived experience, unpaid carers, families and other members of their communities.
- Improving awareness of and access to support for unpaid carers, and working with unpaid carers and local organisations to develop and tailor support services.
- Building, improving and transforming relationships with all partners, especially third sector and voluntary organisations in their areas.
- Developing and embedding human rights approaches to providing care, support and treatment.
- Supporting the wellbeing of the health and social care workforce.
- Transforming leadership and organisational cultures to enable more integrated ways of working.
The report also considers what was overlooked across the plans we reviewed. For example, most of the HSCPs we looked at aspire to tackle health inequalities, but did not discuss how they intend to address the specific health needs of different groups of people, specifically women’s health, BAME communities and Gypsy/Roma Traveller communities. The development of the Community Link Worker service – which has been vital to tackling health inequalities in Scotland – was also given little attention. Finally, plans were unclear about how Partnerships will fully implement Self-directed Support and ensure that all options are available to anyone who needs it.
The report concludes by making several recommendations for HSCPs relating to the need to clarify some of their delivery plans and objectives based on the gaps we highlight.
The report is linked at the bottom of the page. If you have any questions about this research then you can get in touch with Charlotte O’Brien, Policy Officer (Integration, Lived Experience and Engagement), charlotte.o’brien@alliance-scotland.org.uk. And you can learn more about our integration team here.
End of page.
You may also like:
Whilst the draft Covenant is a positive start, it is unclear how it's aims will be realised in practice.
Continue readingWho Cares? Scotland publishes their third Lifelong Rights Issue Paper on Belonging and Connections.
Continue readingSHRC publishes State of the Nation report examining the civil and political rights of all people in Scotland.
Continue readingFill out a survey to share your experiences as a single parent in accessing higher education.
Continue readingALLIANCE signs joint letter calling on political leaders to reaffirm UK commitment to human rights obligations on Human Rights Day 2024.
Continue readingGMC Scotland have published a new report which analyses trends in the medical workforce across the UK.
Continue readingThe government is working with Public Health Scotland to support NHS Boards to operate as effective 'Anchor' institutions.
Continue readingHave your say in Public Health Scotland's (PHS) equality outcome consultation.
Continue readingNHS Education for Scotland (NES) are currently consulting on their equality outcomes for 2025-29.
Continue readingOrganisations across Scotland are urging the Scottish Government to prioritise the Scottish Human Rights Bill.
Continue readingA report from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society calls for governments across the UK to work on a strategy to manage medicine shortages.
Continue readingThe ALLIANCE welcomes the announcement of a new statutory levy to tackle gambling harms.
Continue readingThe Scottish Human Rights Commission have published a report on all economic, social and cultural rights in the Highlands and Islands.
Continue readingWe want to hear from members about our draft report to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights about rights in Scotland.
Continue readingOur briefing ahead of the 2025-26 Scottish Budget calls for a human rights based approach to funding and delivering services.
Continue readingLet's Be Heard will finish gathering experiences of the pandemic in Scotland on 29 November 2024.
Continue readingThe ALLIANCE is hosting several events across December - February in support of the Scottish Government's Women's Health Plan.
Continue readingThe ALLIANCE have joined a new campaign group urging action on fair taxation to fund essential services including health and social care.
Continue readingEdinburgh researchers are set to examine the perspectives of deaf survivors of domestic abuse, focusing on how this trauma affects families.
Continue readingThe ALLIANCE signs joint letter to the Scottish Government on reinstating the Scottish Fuel Insecurity Fund.
Continue readingCentre for Care and Carers UK publish research report on the value of unpaid carers in the UK.
Continue readingHealthcare Improvement Scotland have published Ageing and Frailty Standards for the Care of Older People.
Continue readingThe report notes the focus on the wellbeing economy in the National Outcomes differs from the First Minister's priority for economic growth.
Continue readingThe ALLIANCE shares our disappointment that the NCS Bill has been delayed, and that it may be scrapped.
Continue readingThe Social Justice and Social Security Committee published a report on third sector funding principles as part of the pre-budget scrutiny.
Continue reading