Around 130 NHS Forth Valley staff, with a total of 3,300 years service between them, were invited to a special award ceremony to celebrate their long careers working for the NHS. The event was hosted by the NHS Forth Valley Chairman, Alex Linkston and Chief Executive, Jane Grant at Forth Valley Royal Hospital and each member of staff received a specially designed certificate and pin badge.

Among those invited were ten members of staff who had each notched up 40 years service. These included Janie Macleod, Community Nurse; Janett Sneddon, Senior Midwife/Clinical Coordinator in the Women and Children’s Unit; Morag MacKellar, AHP Manager for Children’s Services; Secretarial Supervisor, Elizabeth Swan and James Cassidy, Service Manager for Falkirk Community Health Services.

Janie started her NHS career in 1975 as a Domestic Assistant in Lennox Castle Hospital. She worked as a Nursing Auxiliary in Bellsdyke Hospital, Lochgreen Hospital, Bonnybridge and also at Falkirk & District Royal Infirmary. In 2002, Janie became a staff nurse working in Falkirk & District Royal Infirmary and Stirling Royal Infirmary, before joining NHS 24 as a Nurse Adviser. She then took up a post at Camelon Clinic as a Community Nurse.

Janett joined the NHS in 1975 as a Student Nurse and Student Midwife in Bangour General Hospital and, between 1979 and 1982, worked as a Staff Midwife, Staff Nurse and Sister. She then moved to Leicester General as a Staff Midwife and then Sister Midwife, before returning to Forth Valley in 1988 where she is currently a Senior Midwife and Clinical Co-ordinator in the Women and Children’s Unit at Forth Valley Royal Hospital.

Morag began working for the NHS in 1975 as a Dietitian in Wythenshaw Hospital in Manchester. She then became a Chief Dietitian in 1976 in the Victoria Infirmary in Glasgow before moving to NHS Forth Valley in 1979 where she has worked as a District Dietitian, Area Dietitian, AHP Co-ordinator, Head of Nutrition & Dietetics and Public Health Nutritionist. Morag is currently an AHP Manager for Children’s Services.

Elizabeth’s first post in the NHS was in 1975 when she was employed as a Personal Secretary in Bellsdyke Hospital. She subsequently worked for a few years in the Western Infirmary in Glasgow before returning to Forth Valley in 1978 to a Personal Secretary post in Falkirk & District Royal Infirmary. In 1991, Elizabeth transferred to Stirling Royal Infirmary before moving to Forth Valley Royal Hospital in 2011.

James started his career as a Nursing Assistant at Lennox Castle Hospital but after completing his nursing training quickly progressed through the ranks as a Charge Nurse, Senior Charge Nurse, Community Learning Disability Nurse, Senior Nursing Officer and Professional Nurse Adviser. After 31 years of working in Greater Glasgow and Clyde he made the move to Forth Valley where he has been responsible for a wide range of community and mental health services across the Falkirk area.

Alex Linkston, Chairman of NHS Forth Valley, said: “It was a great pleasure and a privilege to present these awards to staff and to have the opportunity to personally thank them for the contribution they have made to the NHS during their long and dedicated service.”

Jane Grant, Chief Executive of NHS Forth Valley, added: “The staff who attended this year’s award ceremony came from many different backgrounds and it was fascinating to listen to their personal stories and hear about some of the changes they had witnessed during their long NHS careers.”