Patients and members of the public across Forth Valley are being invited to have their say on any changes and improvements they would like to see at Forth Valley Royal Hospital.

A Public Participation Group is to meet for the next three months to share feedback, suggestions and ideas which will help inform local plans and priorities.

The work is being taken forward as part of wider plans to respond to the Board’s escalation to Stage 4 of the NHS Scotland Performance Escalation Framework and address the recommendations from the recent Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) inspection report on Forth Valley Royal Hospital.

The first meeting is being held in the Spiritual Care Centre in the atrium on the ground floor of Forth Valley Royal Hospital on Tuesday 21st February 2023 at 6.00pm. Requests to join the group are already starting to come in and anyone who wants to attend or find out more on how they can get involved should email fv.fvquality@nhs.scot

Discussions will be led by NHS Forth Valley’s Quality Improvement Team who are keen to work with local people across the area to discuss initial improvement plans and identify any gaps or further changes they would like to see. Ideally, the Team are looking for people who can commit to an hour every fortnight for the next three months but anyone who is interested in sharing feedback or suggestions is encouraged to get in touch as this can be captured in a range of ways.

NHS Forth Valley’s Executive Nurse Director, Prof Frances Dodd, said: “It’s important that we work closely with local patients and the public so that they have a say in how healthcare is delivered and the opportunity to identify any changes they would like to see. This will help inform local plans and ensure the actions we take meet the needs of local people.”

NHS Forth Valley’s Quality and Patient Safety Lead, Morven Dunn, continued: “We would like to hear from a wide and diverse range of individuals from all areas and communities, particularly those who often feel they don’t have a voice or are not heard.”

A number of improvements have already been made in the last two months, including introducing care and comfort rounds in the Emergency Department and acute assessment areas and reducing the number of contingency beds in use across local hospitals. There have also been improvements in performance in a number of service areas.