BETTER HIV SERVICES FOR CAMDEN

24 November 2005

Camden Council has appointed a Commissioner to act as an HIV ‘champion’ to plan services and highlight the needs of people living with the virus in the borough. The ‘champion’ role was one of 16 recommendations from a six-month probe into HIV services in Camden by a cross-party scrutiny panel.

The Executive supported all 16 recommendations at a meeting on Wednesday 23 November. In addition to agreeing these specific actions Councillors also considered an overall plan for the future of HIV social services to fit changing needs and diminishing government funding.

The plan recommends more social care to meet the chronic needs of people with HIV later on in life and less generic care at the earlier stages of the illness. The adaptations to the service are based on new research showing advances in medical technology mean people with HIV in the borough live longer and healthier lives. However, they are also more likely to suffer from brain damage and mental ill health in the later stages of the illness.

The specific actions that will take place in response to the Scrutiny Panel investigation include:

· Developing the role of the borough-based commissioner to act as an HIV ‘champion’ to plan services and raise the profile and awareness of HIV services in the borough

· Developing existing arrangements for pooling resources with other London boroughs to get the best value for money services for people with HIV

· Looking into setting up a website to signpost people to appropriate HIV services
· Lobbying the Government, Local Government Association and the Association of London Government to stop funding cuts for HIV services

The plan to make overall improvements to the way HIV social services are delivered to take into account changing needs includes:

· Changing the care given by social workers from a general support role to a more specialist role addressing brain damage and mental health concerns

· Continuing peer support for the increasing number of woman living with HIV in the borough
· Continue to provide complementary health as people with HIV have told us they find this extremely helpful in maintaining their well-being

· Funding HIV training and information through a corporate council budget

Cllr Maggie Cosin, Executive Member for Adult Social Care and Health, Camden Council said:

“As the realities of living with HIV change, Camden must change to give the right care to the right people. The Scrutiny Panel’s investigation has given us some good ideas to help ensure we do this.

“Funding from government for HIV services has reduced so we need to make sure we are getting the best value for money from our reduced funds. The new way we will deliver services aims to do just that. Camden Council remains committed to providing the right services for people living with HIV. Despite the reduction in government funding and change in the way services are delivered, we will remain one of the highest investors in social care for people with HIV in the country.”

Cllr Jonathan Simpson, Chair of the Scrutiny Panel added:

"I am delighted that Camden has responded to positively to the recommendations of our investigation into the future of HIV services. Camden has one of the highest HIV infection rates in London and the country, and this looks set to rise in years to come.

"All the service users we met believed that a champion within the council would help ensure that their needs were responded to. I hope that other local authorities will follow Camden's approach by appointing an individual to champion HIV related issues".

The improved HIV services will be implemented by April 2006.

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