Took 2 years to findout the ccg process to access choice in mental health

The request was refused by NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board.

Dear NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board,

Mid Essex ccg took,
6 months to provide the information on the only service they commissioned
"Eput" NHS?

And 2 years to provide the CCG process a GP would use to access the choice of Provider in Routine secondary care mental health. That process is completing an Individual funding request form/IFR and showing clinical exceptionality?

And it was not for lack of trying, the complete opposite they put every obstacle they could think of in the way to delay and hinder providing these simple information requests .
Including claiming providing the information of "Eput" is a complex request?

However, according to statute law and NHS England guidance clinical exceptionality does not need to be shown for routine treatment in secondary care mental health.
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/c...

So the law on the choice of provider for routine treatment does not require exceptionality to be proven that is confirmed. Proving Exceptional is very difficult and used to block choice.
So what's been going on at the Essex ccgs???
Its been done to save money.

Mid Essex ccg like the other Essex ccg has not been following the law on choice since it was introduced in April 2014.

The Essex ccg's own FOI has confirmed previously no one/zero/nil/0 patients of theirs have been allowed to choose the provider since 2014.
As the Essex ccgs unlawfuly claim exceptionality has to be proven.

Would you like to provide some up-to-date figures?

Yours faithfully,

iain gordon

Dear NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board,

Directly copied and pasted from the CCG website
"If your GP needs to refer you for a physical or mental health condition, in most cases you have a legal right to choose which hospital or service you go to. This includes NHS and many private hospitals that provide services to the NHS. You may also choose your clinical team led by a consultant or named healthcare professional.2

As the ccg's has confirmed no patients of the former Essex ccgs have been able to choose their provider since 2014, but you still made this claim it was "...mental health condition in most cases, you have the legal right to choose which hospital or service you go to"

Why did you have this on your website then for 8 years when the Essex ccgs have confirmed they have always blocked choice in mental health?
Was it just to meet an NHS requirement/target of promoting choice rather than actually providing choice?

It was once quoted by mid Essex ccg that there was a choice as there were two NHS providers in Essex these two providers then merged to form Eput. So the ccg wrongly claims that's is the reason why there is no longer any choice in Essex as there is now only one provider.
However, this totally incorrect choice means any provider in England that has a NHS commissioning contract, is not what the Essex ccgs claim.
NHS England will confirm this is correct and satute law also.
So what's going on?

This ccg and now ics is blocking of choice in mental health to the detriment of NHS patients it serves for nearly a decade. Why as it helps this NHS account lower spending and pay for NHS office staff and managers to have endless meetings etc and keeps the gravy train going.

Yours faithfully,

iain gordon

FOI, Mseicb (NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX ICB - 99E), NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board

1 Attachment

FOI Request: TMS Funded Up-to-date Figures
Our Reference Number: 2223147

 

Dear Mr Gordon,

 

I am writing to acknowledge receipt of your request under the Freedom of
Information Act 2000 to NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board on
9^th September 2022. The information is currently being collated and a
response will be sent to you no later than 20 working days. The deadline
is calculated to be 7^th October 2022.

If you have any queries regarding your request, please do not hesitate to
contact the FOI team on this email address.

 

Regards,

 

Jimmy Allimadi

Access to Information Coordinator

Information Governance Team / Digital Technology Directorate 

Email: [1][email address]  | Phone: 01268 594405

Website: [2]www.midandsouthessex.ics.nhs.uk
Twitter: [3]@MSEssex_ICS | Facebook: [4]MSEICS | Instagram: [5]@MSEssex_ICS

[6]Mid and South Essex ICS logo and NHS Mid and South Essex ICB logo

 

Confidentiality Notice:

This e-mail is confidential and privileged.  If you are not the intended
recipient please accept our apologies.  Please do not disclose copy or
distribute information in this e-mail or take any action in reliance on
its contents:  to do so is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. 
Please inform us that this message has gone astray before deleting it. 
Thank you for your co-operation.

 

show quoted sections

Dear FOI, Mseicb (NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX ICB - 99E),

Please do remember have stated previously on numerous occasions.
Answer the questions put, not a question of your own making and in a format
that is suitable for patients with learning difficulty
Please do not refer to complex CCG/ICS documentation as the NHS is supposed to make information easily accessible for patient on the issues raised

Yours sincerely,

iain gordon

FOI, Mseicb (NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX ICB - 99E), NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board

2 Attachments

FOI Request: TMS Funded Up-to-date Figures
Our Reference Number: 2223147

 

Dear Mr Gordon,

 

Further to your request under the Freedom Of Information Act, received on
9^th September 2022, please find NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care
Board’s response attached.

 

If you are dissatisfied with the response you have received, you have the
right to request a review of our decision or make a complaint about how
your request has been handled. Your request should be made within 40
working days of receipt of this letter, and we will reply within 20
working days of receipt. Any such request received after 40 working days
will only be considered at the discretion of the organisation.

 

If our decision is unchanged following a review and you remain
dissatisfied with this, you then have the right to make a formal complaint
to the Information Commissioner who can be contacted at:

Information Commissioners Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow,
Cheshire SK9 5AF.

Further information on your rights under FOI is available here:
[1]www.ico.gov.uk

 

To comply with The Re-use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2005,
this information is provided to you under the Open Government Licence.
Information on the OGL, together with conditions of use and exemptions,
can be found here:
[2]www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/

 

Should you require any further information, please do not hesitate to
contact the FOI team on this email address.

 

Regards,

 

Jimmy Allimadi

Access to Information Coordinator

Information Governance Team / Digital Technology Directorate 

Email: [3][email address]  | Phone: 01268 594405

Website: [4]www.midandsouthessex.ics.nhs.uk
Twitter: [5]@MSEssex_ICS | Facebook: [6]MSEICS | Instagram: [7]@MSEssex_ICS

[8]Mid and South Essex ICS logo and NHS Mid and South Essex ICB logo

 

Confidentiality Notice:

This e-mail is confidential and privileged.  If you are not the intended
recipient please accept our apologies.  Please do not disclose copy or
distribute information in this e-mail or take any action in reliance on
its contents:  to do so is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. 
Please inform us that this message has gone astray before deleting it. 
Thank you for your co-operation.

 

show quoted sections

Dear FOI, Mseicb (NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX ICB - 99E),

The ICS response has answered a different question one relating to TMS, not choice as I asked

The original request was
"Dear NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board,

Mid Essex ccg took,
6 months to provide the information on the only service they commissioned
"Eput" NHS?

And 2 years to provide the CCG process a GP would use to access the choice of Provider in Routine secondary care mental health. That process is completing an Individual funding request form/IFR and showing clinical exceptionality?

And it was not for lack of trying, the complete opposite they put every obstacle they could think of in the way to delay and hinder providing these simple information requests .
Including claiming providing the information of "Eput" is a complex request?

However, according to statute law and NHS England guidance clinical exceptionality does not need to be shown for routine treatment in secondary care mental health.
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/c...

So the law on the choice of provider for routine treatment does not require exceptionality to be proven that is confirmed. Proving Exceptional is very difficult and used to block choice.
So what's been going on at the Essex ccgs???
Its been done to save money.

Mid Essex ccg like the other Essex ccg has not been following the law on choice since it was introduced in April 2014.

The Essex ccg's own FOI has confirmed previously no one/zero/nil/0 patients of theirs have been allowed to choose the provider since 2014.
As the Essex ccgs unlawfuly claim exceptionality has to be proven.

Would you like to provide some up-to-date figures?

Yours faithfully,

iain gordon"

I asked for up to date figures on the number of requests for choice in secondary mental health care provider that have been received by the mid essex ccgs', stp now ics and the number actually funded.
"The Essex ccg's own FOI has confirmed previously no one/zero/nil/0 patients of theirs have been allowed to choose the provider since 2014.
Would you like to provide some up-to-date figures?

Yours sincerely,

iain gordon

FOI, Mseicb (NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX ICB - 99E), NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board

1 Attachment

FOI Request: TMS Funded Up-to-date Figures
Our Reference Number: 2223147

 

Dear Mr Gordon,

 

I am writing to acknowledge receipt of your request for an internal review
of the handling of your request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000
to NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board

on 17^th October 2022.

 

The review is currently being carried out by senior staff and a response
will be sent to you no later than 20 working days. The deadline is
calculated to be 14^th November 2022.

 

If you have any queries regarding your request, please do not hesitate to
contact the FOI team on this email address.

 

Regards,

 

Access to Information Team

Information Governance Team / Digital Technology Directorate 

Website: [1]www.midandsouthessex.ics.nhs.uk
Twitter: [2]@MSEssex_ICS | Facebook: [3]MSEICS | Instagram: [4]@MSEssex_ICS

[5]Mid and South Essex ICS logo and NHS Mid and South Essex ICB logo

 

Confidentiality Notice:

This e-mail is confidential and privileged.  If you are not the intended
recipient please accept our apologies.  Please do not disclose copy or
distribute information in this e-mail or take any action in reliance on
its contents:  to do so is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. 
Please inform us that this message has gone astray before deleting it. 
Thank you for your co-operation.

 

show quoted sections

FOI, Mseicb (NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX ICB - 99E), NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board

1 Attachment

FOI Request: TMS Funded Up-to-date Figures
Our Reference Number: 2223147

 

Dear Mr Gordon

 

As referenced below, your email of 9^th September questioned the rationale
of choice provider and complained about provision of exceptionallity used
to safe money, etc.

However, you did ask for an up-to-date figures. The response given to you
on 7th October provided this. As the requesting information was disclosed,
there was no ground for a review. If you want to address the why and how
this policy is in place, you need to go through the complaint channel.

FOIA only covers recorded information held  by a public bodey. This was
provided to you.

 

Regards,

 

Access to Information Team

Information Governance Team / Digital Technology Directorate 

Email: [1][email address]  |

Website: [2]www.midandsouthessex.ics.nhs.uk
Twitter: [3]@MSEssex_ICS | Facebook: [4]MSEICS | Instagram: [5]@MSEssex_ICS

[6]Mid and South Essex ICS logo and NHS Mid and South Essex ICB logo

 

Confidentiality Notice:

This e-mail is confidential and privileged.  If you are not the intended
recipient please accept our apologies.  Please do not disclose copy or
distribute information in this e-mail or take any action in reliance on
its contents:  to do so is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. 
Please inform us that this message has gone astray before deleting it. 
Thank you for your co-operation.

 

show quoted sections

Dear FOI, Mseicb (NHS MID AND SOUTH ESSEX ICB - 99E),

You know
That ICS complaints will not provide an answer to these questions and
That the health ombudsman can not force you to answer the questions has no legal power
So it makes no sense in your response to refer me to ICS complaints
Unaccountable.

Yours sincerely,

iain gordon