On the 23rd of Nov 2022, the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, Humza Yousaf, confirmed in a statement to the Scottish Parliament that NHS Forth Valley had been escalated to Stage 4 of the NHS Scotland Performance Escalation Framework.

As a result, an Assurance Board has been established which brings direct formal oversight and engagement from Scottish Government to review and scrutinise an Improvement Plan developed by NHS Forth Valley’s Executive Leadership Team.

Scottish Government Assurance Board

The Assurance Board, chaired by Christine McLaughlin, Co-Director of Population Health, is supporting NHS Forth Valley’s Executive Leadership Team to deliver improvements through effective governance, strong leadership and an improved culture to deliver sustainable change. Work is also underway to improve performance in a number of service areas including GP and Primary Care out of hours services, unscheduled (emergency) care, mental health and integration.

You can find out more about the Assurance Board, including membership, terms of reference, minutes of meetings and updates to MSPs on the Scottish Government website.

Assurance and Improvement Plan

An Assurance and Improvement Plan (version 3 – see link below) was developed in November 2023. This builds on the work outlined in the two previous Improvement Plans and provides a summary of the key actions and priorities for the next four months, leads and timescales and an increased focus on evidencing the impact of each action and the difference it is expected to make. The Plan will be regularly reviewed to monitor progress and will also incorporate any outstanding recommendations from the external review of Corporate Governance (see link below), commissioned by the Board in January 2023.

Our key focus, while on strengthening our leadership informed by effective governance and cultural improvement, is centred around three guiding principles :-

• Putting patients first – everyone who uses our services should expect to receive consistently high standards of care and treatment
•  Supporting our staff – by ensuring that they have the right working conditions and resources to support their own wellbeing and deliver the best care and services possible
• Working in partnership – building and sustaining a culture of collaboration with partners based on trust and respect, learning, and sharing of best practice

Health Improvement Scotland (HIS) Inspection Report and Public Involvement Group

Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) published a report on 5th December 2022 following an unannounced follow-up inspection visit to Forth Valley Royal Hospital on 27th and 28th September 2022.

The report recognises the extreme pressures being experienced across the hospital at the time of the visit due to increased patient numbers, delayed discharges and high levels of staff absence. Following the visit, immediate action taken to address many of the issues and concerns highlighted by the inspectors.

We recognise that there is still more work to do, and we are committed to fully addressing all of the report recommendations and working with the Assurance Board set up by the Scottish Government to drive forward the changes and improvements required across the organisation. Details of the work underway to address the recommendations are outlined in our wider Escalation Improvement Plan.

HIS Action Plan Updates

• Update and Summary of Improvements – October 2023
• Update from Board Meeting – July 2023
• Update from Board Meeting – January 2023
• Update from Board Meeting – March 2023
• 18 Week Progress Update – March 2023
• Update from Board Meeting – May 2023

Additional Information

You can read a copy of the Healthcare Improvement Scotland media release here and a copy of NHS Forth Valley’s media statement in response to the report here.