16th January 2002 - Board Minutes
Minutes of the Meeting of the Board of the Irish Blood Transfusion Service held on Wednesday 16th January 2002
Boardroom, National Blood Centre, Jamess Street, Dublin 8.
Present:
Mr. Michael McLoone (Chairman)
Dr. Mary Horgan
Ms. Valerie Mannix
Mr. Tony McNamara
Dr. Ann OConnor
Dr. Liz Keane
Dr. Karen Murphy
Dr. Gerry Crotty
Dr. Helen Enright
Apologies:
Mr. Pat Farrell
Ms. Maura McGrath
In Attendance:
Mr. Andy Kelly (Deputy CEO)
Dr. William Murphy (NMD)
Mr. Michael Healy (SEO)
HRS Consulting
Minutes of Meeting 14th December 2001
The Minutes of the Board Meeting Friday 14th December 2001, were proposed by Dr L Keane, seconded by Ms V Mannix and signed by the Chairman, subject to agreed amendments.
Matters Arising
Testing Munster Centre
The Chairman informed the meeting that he had a telephone conversation with the Chairman of the Southern Health Board (SHB) and that the SHB were happy with the Terms of Reference of the Expert Group and in a position to nominate an individual to the Group. He also stated that the SHB Chairman had suggested a meeting on Thursday to discuss the nominees. It was proposed that the costs of the Expert Group would be shared between the two Boards. It was agreed that the Chairman, acting CEO and NMD would meet with the SHB Chairman, CEO (or nominee) and a medical representative. The names of a number of candidates to be nominated by the IBTS were discussed.
It was agreed that the IBTS Chairman, acting CEO and NMD would meet with their counterparts on the SHB to progress matters and might issue a joint press statement with regard to the agreement on the Expert Group. The Chairman reaffirmed that the Expert Group will be reviewing the decision of the IBTS on single site testing and will assess the advantages and disadvantages of the decision having regard to clinical, financial, safety, cultural and other such issues.
Finances
The following resolution dated 16th January 2002 was passed.
That the Company do accept the offer of the facility amounting to ª4,762,000 made by Allied Irish Banks plc (the Bank) to the Company subject to the terms and conditions referred to in the letter of sanction dated 09.01.2002 addressed by the Bank to the Company, and that Mr Michael McLoone is hereby authorised to sign on behalf of the Company the letter of sanction and such other authorities, documents and instructions that the Bank shall require to be signed by the Company in connection with the facility.
Directed Donation Programme
It was agreed that the NMD would submit a proposal in his report to the Board at the February meeting, on the MAC recommendation, that it would be inappropriate for the IBTS to set up a directed donation programme.
Corporate Governance and Board Sub-Committees
It was agreed that further consideration of the role and composition of the Finance Committee, frequency of meetings, questions about financial accountability and so forth should be deferred until the interim report is available from HRS Consulting on the issues to be addressed in implementing the programme of organisation development and change. Issues in relation to Corporate governance, the conduct of Board business, the role of Board and Executive Committees (including the Finance and Audit Committees) can best be examined in this wider context. It was agreed that the Director of Finance will be consulted before decisions are taken relating to the Finance and Audit Committees and her report can be resubmitted for these consultations. Mr. Kelly will seek clarification in the meantime from the DOHC on the nature of the financial accountability of the Board, the Chief Executive / Director of Finance and the Finance and Audit Committees.
National Haemovigilance Office (NHO)
Dr E Lawlor gave a presentation on the evolution of Haemovigilance in Ireland and the ongoing work of the NHO. The Chairman and members thanked her for a very clear and comprehensive presentation including the identification of issues needing attention.
It was agreed that Dr W Murphy and Dr E Lawlor would prioritise the list of recommendations of the NHO Annual Report 2000. It was agreed that the prioritising should outline the resource implications arising from the recommendations. It was suggested that the Director of Finance and other members of the Executive, where applicable, could provide some assistance in this area. It was felt that such background work would provide the necessary clarity for the Board on the full implications of adopting recommendations.
The Board voiced its support for the work of the NHO and the reconstitution of the National Steering Committee.
CEOs Report
This was noted.
Programme of Organisation Development and Change
The Chairman informed the Board that he had recently met with the Senior Management Team (SMT) to discuss the Programme of Organisation Development and Change. The Chairman advised that HRS Consulting will be meeting with the members of the Management Team over the next few weeks to listen to their concerns. The HRS interim report to the Steering Group will enable the issues raised in the Flynn report to be examined further and the implications of implementing its recommendations to be assessed. It is understood that some issues will be difficult to resolve but that changes will have to take place at the end of the process, in order to move the organisation forward. It was felt important that all staff members should buy into the process for it to be effective. The Chairman and Board is anxious to collaborate closely with the management in assessing the effectiveness of the change management programme.
Cork Development Project
The development brief was discussed and it was confirmed that the cross-matching facility would be retained. The Board noted that the site option appraisal might take a number of months, at which stage it is hoped that the review of the expert group on testing would be available. It was agreed that at that stage, the functional content could be finalised. The Board awaits a response from the DOHC on the issue of the cell engineering laboratory in Cork.
Minutes of MAC Meeting of 14th November 2001
The Minutes were noted. The issue of remuneration for the international expert on the MAC was discussed. Mr A Kelly is to progress the matter with the NMD and Director of Finance. It is expected that the CEO will bring a proposal to the Board, recommending the appointment of the international expert to the MAC. It was noted that the method of presenting the minutes / recommendations from MAC meetings to the Board will be reviewed as part of the organisation development work being undertaken by HRS Consulting.
The question of funding for attendance at conferences was discussed. Mr A Kelly noted that the budget for attendance at conferences had been increased for 2002. The matter is to be brought to the SMT for discussion. It was suggested that a policy/protocol for attendance at conferences be drawn up.
AOB
The Chairman briefed the Board on the contact made by Cahal Goan, Director of Television, RTE on the potential impact of the "No Tears" programme on the Blood Supply. As a result IBTS has submitted a proposal to RTE to have a Prime Time programme on the Irish Blood Transfusion Service which would compare the then and now situation and be accompanied by a studio discussion. This proposal could lessen any adverse impacts of the programme and create a better understanding of the changes which have taken place in the service.
The Chairman thanked Mr A Kelly, Dr W Murphy and Ms D Healy (Communications Manager) for their ongoing work with the media in maintaining the blood supply. The SMT will revert to the Board after it receives a response from RTE.
Date of Next Meeting
The next meeting of the IBTS Board will be on Wednesday February 13th at 2pm.
