MCC Health Scrutiny Committee meeting - January 2022 update

Macc attended the Health Scrutiny Committee meeting on 12 January. This meeting included a Covid-19 update from the Director of Public Health in Manchester, who explained the current rates of infection and hospitalisations and emphaised the importance of getting all three vaccination doses as vaccination uptake has reduced in recent weeks. The meeting also included two main reports. Firstly, the report on alcohol, drugs and tobacco addiction treatment services in Manchester and a report from health infrastructure development.

The Alcohol, Drugs and Tobacco Addiction Treatment Services in Manchester report provides a good insight into the treatment available for Manchester residents and includes detailed statistics regarding demand and uptake of the services as well as success rates. The report also includes feedback on how Change, Grow, Live were able to continue to provide support services during the pandemic and have adopted a hybrid model of delivery, which in some cases has led to people from more affluent areas accessing support as the stigma of having an addiction is seen to have been reduced by using online services. There has also been a greater demand for support during the pandemic from those who may have been reluctant to use statutory support previously. There is some detail about how the service supports members of the homeless community with treatment and with accessing accommodation. They are also seeing a greater number of people presenting with mental health challenges in addition to addiction compared to pre-Covid times.

You can access the recording of the January Health Scrutiny Committee meeting by accessing the following link here: https://vimeo.com/656986268. There is an ongoing invitation to VCSE colleagues to attend any of Scrutiny Committee meetings. Macc would encourage VCSE sector colleagues to attend any of the six Scrutiny Committee meetings, which are relevant to your organisation and or to send information that showcase the vital work your organisation does. Each Manchester City Council Scrutiny Committee meeting is open to the public, streamed live and recorded.  For more information, visit https://secure.manchester.gov.uk/info/100004/the_council_and_democracy/5087/scrutiny

The next Health Scrutiny Committee meeting will be on 9 February at 10am at the Manchester Town Hall Extension. If you would like to attend this meeting and or provide a case study of your work, please contact [email protected] and she can support you with this.