BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT PLAN
Introduction
The Health Department is fully committed to the Executive's drive to improve public services through the application of Best Value principles. The Department actively encourages a culture of continuous improvement.
This Departmental Improvement Plan forms part of the Health Department's contribution to the Scottish Executive's change agenda. It links into the Changing to Deliver review that is focusing on pan-Executive processes and culture. The Best Value Reviews in the Plan also inform and assist Departmental business planning.
The following programme of Best Value Reviews covers the period 2003/4 to 2005/6. It is actively reviewed and monitored by the Health Department Board.
Year 1 Streamlining financial management (completed)
(2003-04)
Internal and external communications (completed)
Public Appointments (completed)
Funding of the Voluntary Sector (not yet started)
Year 2 Evaluate/Implement Y1+2
(2004-05)
Older People's Unit
Performance management process
Health improvement across the Executive
Year 3 Evaluate/Implement Y1+2
(2005-06)
Centre for Change and Innovation
Community Care
Joint Future agenda
In 2005-06, we shall aim to extend our programme of Best Value Reviews to include more areas of the Department's work, and to roll forward our programme into 2006-07.
Appendix B
I NFORMATION SYSTEMS STRATEGY 2005-06
Introduction
1. Purpose of the Health Department IS Strategy
1.1 This is the third version of the Information Systems ( IS) Strategy for the Health Department ( HD) which was originally produced in 2002. Its main purpose is to act as a basis for current and future information systems ( ISs) and information and communications technologies ( ICTs) needed to deliver and support all business objectives. The proposed strategy takes account of the Scottish Executive's considerable investment in IS/ ICT so far and the Executive's IS strategy.
1.2 The Strategy makes a clear link between the use of ICTs and meeting the Programme for Government ( PfG) along with the resultant Deplan/Divplan aims and objectives. The Strategy aims to maximise any opportunities for greater collaboration and joined-up working. The Strategy is also fundamental in the preparation of a forward programme of IS/ ICT developments within the Health Department.
2. Scope of the Health Department IS Strategy
2.1 The IS Strategy covers all business area in the Department.
2.2 The IS Strategy promotes joint working with National Services Scotland for the provision of NHS-wide statistics and the publication of web-ready information on the SHOW (Scottish Health on the Web) web site.
3. Period of the IS Strategy and Review
3.1 The period of this Strategy document is 12 months.
Business Context and Objectives
4. Aims, Objectives and Business Direction
4.1 Specifically, the Health Department's purpose is:
To improve the health and quality of life of people in Scotland; and
To promote better health and community care services, ensuring there is support and protection for those in greatest need.
The aims are covered in detail in Section 1 of the Health Department Business Plan 2005-06.
5. Business Drivers
5.1 These aims are clearly in line with the SE key business objectives, sanctioned by Ministers, which are as follows:
to encourage innovation and creativity in government;
to identify and remove blockages that prevent the public sector from being modern;
to encourage the sharing of knowledge
to put the citizen at the centre of what we do.
5.2 They also match the strategic investment criteria which underpin the business objectives
5.3 The following are potential business drivers:
Ministerial initiatives
Legislative changes
Cross-cutting issues
Electronic Service Delivery
21 st Century Government initiatives
Departmental Plan
Changing to Deliver
Our National Health
Working Together for Scotland
Freedom of Information
Partnership for Care and Partnership for a Better Scotland
Building a Health Service Fit for the Future
6. Internal and External Business Contacts and Relationships
6.1 Internal
6.2 External.
NHS Boards and Special Health Boards
NHS Services Scotland - ISD Scotland Division
Local Authorities
Other Uk Health Departments
7. Information Requirements of the Health Department
7.1 Key information sources used by the Department.
Paper & Electronic from GPs / LHCCs/ CHPs/ NHS Boards
Paper & Electronic from DoH (England & Wales)
Paper & Electronic from Local Authorities
Electronic from SHOW website
Electronic from S.E. Internet & Intranet
Electronic from various other websites.
8. Current use of IS/ ICT in the Health Department
8.1 Information Systems currently in use/supported by the Department.
Health have maximised the use of existing ICT systems to produce over 60 MS Access database/hybrid. Types vary from Financial, Appointment, Consultative, Statistical, Workflow, Project Management to numerous generic Record Keeping, File and/or Mail Databases. ICT tools have also been used to create and maintain around 80 Web sites mainly housed within the SHOW site.
IS Strategy
9. Priorities for the Health Department IS Strategy
9.1 The Health Department will use corporate ICT systems to assist in delivering its key objectives. We are lookin to improve Communications both internally and externally and are streamlining and improving internal systems to maximise efficiency by using electronic means where possible. We do not foresee a need to bid to SEISSG for funds at this time.
9.2 In addition, there are a considerable number of underlying performance measures in, for example, the Performance Assessment Framework which the Health Department uses to track NHS Boards' progress and performance.
10. Timetable
10.1 The strategy implementation plan aims to:
Appendix C
PERFORMANCE 2004
Ministerial Correspondence
Green Folders and Diary Cases
In the year ended 31 December 2004, the Health Department received 2585 (· 201 on last year) Green Folders and 513 (· 166) Diary cases, some 21% of the total Scottish Executive ministerial correspondence caseload for the year. Focusing on Green Folders only (excluding Diary cases), over the year 87% of draft replies were forwarded to Private Office within 14 days, compared to 88% in the previous year. This continues to be above the Executive target of 84%.
The Department issued 89% of Green Folder replies within the target of 17 working days during the year, compared with 85% in the previous year. This represents steady progress towards the Executive target of 92%
93% of final replies were issued within the 25-day deadline against the Executive target of 100%. This compares with 94% of replies issued within the deadline in the previous year and 88% for the Executive as a whole.
The following table compares performance between the 2003 and 2004 calendar years. Against a background of increased volume, although slightly down on the previous year, the overall performance remains high and significantly above the Scottish Executive average. This reflects the commitment of Health Department staff to improving efficiency in preparing appropriate answers to Ministerial correspondence.
Green Folders
(excluding Diary cases) | Year end December 2003 | Year end December 2004 |
|---|
| Number | % | Number | % |
|---|
HD: Draft to PO in 14 days | 2095 | 88% | 2253 | 87% |
|---|
HD: Final issued in 17 days | 2016 | 85% | 2089 | 89% |
|---|
HD: Final issued in 25 days | 2247 | 94% | 2398 | 93% |
|---|
SE: Draft to PO in 14 days | 8879 | 84% | 9740 | 81% |
|---|
SE: Final issued in 17 days | 7791 | 75% | 8515 | 71% |
|---|
SE: Final issued in 25 days | 9392 | 91% | 10541 | 88% |
|---|
Target: Draft to PO in 14 days | | 84% | | 84% |
|---|
Target: Final in 17 days | | 80% | | 92% |
|---|
Target: Final in 25 days | | 100% | | 100% |
|---|
Redrafts
Figures collected by CCU show that from 1 November 2004 to 31 March 2005, this being the period of the current Ministerial team's tenure in office, the proportion of MCS cases returned to the Department for redrafting. These are set out in the following table. SE figures for the corresponding period are not available:
Cases returned for redrafting 1 November 2004 - 31 March 2005
| Cases returned for significant redraft |
|---|
No GF cases received | No Diary cases received | GFs | SE Average | Diary | SE Average |
|---|
No. | % | No. | % |
|---|
995 | 244 | 137 | 14 | | 45 | 18 | |
Official Replies
The Health Department dealt with 4,638 Official Replies during 2004, (an increase of 70% from 2003) which represented 24% of the total items of correspondence for the Executive. Of these, 96% were replied to within the 20 day limit matching the 96% average for the Executive as a whole.
Parliamentary Questions
The volume of Parliamentary Questions answered by the Health Department remains very significant. In the year ending 31 December 2004, the Department answered 2,127 (· 472 on the previous year) written questions and 217 (· 207) oral questions.
Latest published figures for the Executive as a whole show that 8,646 written questions were lodged in the year ending 31 December 2004, and that 25% (· 2%) of the total were answered by the Health Department.
The number of PQs answered on time during 2004 was consistently high at 85%.
The number of PQs put forward to Private Office on time in 2004 was also consistently high at 95%.
Appendix D
HEALTH DEPARTMENT CORPORATE AIMS, OBJECTIVES AND VALUES
Introduction
The Health Department is wholly committed to the principles of modernising government:
ensuring that policy making is more joined up and strategic - developing policies to deliver outcomes that matter, not simply reacting to short-term pressures;
making sure that public service users, not providers, are the focus, by matching services more closely to people's lives - meeting the needs of citizens, not the convenience of service providers;
the delivery of public services that are high quality and efficient.
Aim, Vision and Values
The Health Department shares the Scottish Executive's overall mission:
Aim: |
To work with Scottish Ministers to improve the well being of Scotland and its people. |
Vision: |
Our vision is an organisation which: | earns respect and trust promotes Scottish interests is open and in touch works together works with and learns from others ensures high quality services makes best use of resources values its people.
|
Values: |
As Civil Servants, our values are: | integrity and honesty objectivity political impartiality fairness.
|
Purpose
The Health Department works with Scottish Ministers, with other Scottish Executive Departments, with NHSScotland and with local authorities and the voluntary sector to improve the health of, and to promote better healthcare and community care services for, the people of Scotland; and to reduce inequalities in health.
Functions of the Health Department
The functions of the Health Department are:
Support for Scottish Ministers
the health of the people of Scotland, and on the challenge of reducing health inequalities;
the provision of health and social care services in Scotland;
public resourcing for health and social care services; and on their value for money
determining priorities for NHSScotland;
developing policies for the promotion of patients' and service users' interests in the provision of health and social care services (e.g. access to services, quality and safety of care);
working in partnership with other government departments and agencies to achieve cross-cutting policy objectives, in particular health improvement, health protection and social justice;
enabling Scottish Ministers to account to Parliament for the performance of NHSScotland and for social care services funded by the Health Department;
providing assistance to Parliamentary Committees in their scrutiny functions, in particular, the Health Committee;
representing Scottish interests at United Kingdom level on matters which impact on health and social care;
providing timely, relevant and accurate information to the public on health and social care matters in accordance with the demands of open government;
Leading and Managing NHS Scotland
developing strategies and plans to implement national health service priorities;
developing strategies and plans for the workforce of NHSScotland, and for its infrastructure; health and social care policy, in partnership with key stakeholder groups;
providing guidance to NHSScotland on the planning of health care services;
Resource allocation
allocating resources to NHSScotland organisations;
requiring financial propriety and regularity, and ensuring the economical, efficient and effective use of resources;
Operational policies
providing guidance to NHSScotland on organisational and management issues, and on the development of clinical services;
providing guidance on other operational matters, including partnership working with local authorities and voluntary bodies;
Performance management
promoting consistent and improving standards of performance across all NHSScotland organisations;
monitoring and holding to account NHSScotland organisations, particularly NHS Boards, for their performance, by means of the Performance and Accountability Framework and Accountability Review processes.
Improving information management
The Health Department is committed to ensuring that the Brix system is updated on a regular 6 monthly basis keeping the health content on the system up to date and fit for purpose.
As the Department with the largest proportion of content, we aim to ensure that staff make best use of the system and that our content is regularly maintained.
A key task for the Department in the year ahead will be the preparatory work necessary to ensure a smooth transition to ERDM in the Autumn 2005.
Promoting equality and diversity
The Health Department is committed to a policy of equal opportunities for all staff within the Department and NHSScotland. Our policy is to:
promote equality and diversity
tackle discrimination in all its aspects
put equality at the heart of policymaking and service provision
promote good employment practice
recognise the importance of providing all staff the opportunity to realise their full potential.