A ‘one-stop service’ in  NHS Forth Valley designed  to improve the care and treatment of  frail older people and help reduce avoidable hospital admissions, will be the subject of a meeting  later this month in the Lecture Theatre at Stirling Community Hospital, Livilands Gate.

Organised by Stirling Public Partnership Forum, those attending will hear that the service enables GPs to refer patients to a Rapid Access Clinic based at Forth Valley Royal Hospital., where a range of tests and investigations can be carried out at the same time. These include blood tests, X-rays, scans and a range of cognitive tests. Assessments are also made by a Consultant Geriatrician.

The service is run in conjunction with allied health professionals and social services who can, where appropriate, arrange follow-up care at home. Anyone who needs to be admitted to hospital is moved to the inpatient frailty unit where they are assessed by a special multidisciplinary team to help identify their needs.

The meeting on Wednesday September 21^st  2016 starts at 7.00pm and attendees will also be briefed about the Discharge Lounge on the ground floor of Forth Valley Royal, which can seat 20 patients whilst they are waiting to go home. Being cared for in this area until transport arrives, means their vacated bed can be offered to another patient needing treatment. The lounge provides hot and cold drinks and snacks, with a soup and sandwich on the menu at lunchtime. It is staffed by nurses helped by volunteers. There will also be a presentation by the Scottish Ambulance Service.