Main updates
Annual Review
On Monday 13 November, we held our Annual Review at the Rothes Halls in Glenrothes. The event was an opportunity for the public to join us for a look back at our performance over 2022/2023 and take part in a question-and-answer session. It was the first in-person review since the pandemic and was also live-streamed via YouTube.
A video of the session, which detailed aspects including financial performance and waiting times, along with slides and other information, can be viewed here.
New NHS Fife Board chair appointed
Patricia Kilpatrick has been appointed new chair of the NHS Fife Board. Ms Kilpatrick, who will step down from her current position as vice-chair of NHS Tayside, will take up the role on 1 February 2024. Ms Kilpatrick will replace Alistair Morris, who was appointed acting chair in April 2023. More information is available here.
Park Road GP practice tender
The provision of medical services from Park Road Medical Practice will shortly be made available as part of a tender process. The practice has been run by NHS Fife and the Fife Health and Social Care Partnership since April, after the previous GP partners were unable to continue to provide general medical services.
The process of tendering to find new GP partners is not new to Fife and has recently been carried out successfully in other areas. If no new contractors are found, then our ongoing efforts to ensure patients at Park Road have access to local medical services will continue.
Temporary closure of ward 10 at Victoria Hospital
During routine monitoring of the water system in Phase 2 of the Victoria Hospital, we recently detected traces of legionella bacteria within a small number of outlets. As a precaution, ward 10 was temporarily closed to enable remedial action, including chemical flushing of the affected part of the water system, to be carried out. The ward will reopen shortly, with patient and staff safety remaining our priority.
Arrangement with NHS Lothian to make vaccination appointments more accessible
Fife residents will shortly have the added option of attending flu and COVID vaccination clinics in NHS Lothian areas. With appointments available in Fife until late-December and drop-ins planned for earlier in the month, a new agreement with NHS Lothian will enable people in Fife to book appointments in South Queensferry. People living in Fife can also attend drop-in clinics across the Lothians with no appointment necessary. More information will be made available in the coming days.
Drop-in flu vaccination clinic for children
A drop-in flu vaccination clinic that was postponed because of Storm Babet will take place in St Andrews on Saturday (18 November). The session, which is for children aged 2 - 5 years, runs between 9.30am and 3pm at St Andrews Community Hospital. No appointment is needed.
Unwell visitors reminded not to visit hospital
We’ve been reminding people not to visit loved ones in hospital unless they are feeling well. The reminder is to help prevent viruses being passed to vulnerable patients, and the healthcare staff caring for them. The public messaging comes following feedback from teams that people with coughs and colds are continuing to visit hospital wards. More information is available here.
NHS Fife Lifechangers
Last week, we began the fourth series of our NHS Fife Lifechangers social media campaign. Across the organisation, we are privileged to have so many people who make positive differences to the lives of patients and colleagues every day. Lifechangers is a vehicle for recruitment that profiles the stories behind the individuals and teams that make NHS Fife. Our first NHS Fife Lifechanger of this series featured trainee assistant practitioner in mental health, Lia Robinson.
Winter ready webpages
With temperatures dropping and viruses like flu circulating more, we have updated the winter readiness pages our website. The pages are designed to give people information and advice to help them stay well and, should they require healthcare services, get the right care in the right place. You can view the pages here.
Statistical information
NHS Performs
NHS Performs brings together a range of information on how NHS Fife is performing, including A&E performance, cancelled operations, delayed discharges and diagnostic waiting times.
The latest information can be viewed here.
Workforce information
NHS Education for Scotland publishes a quarterly update on workforce related information, including the number of staff directly employed by NHS Fife and the number of vacant posts for nursing and midwifery staff, allied health professions, and medical and dental consultants.
The interactive dashboard also outlines trends over time and references other useful information such as sickness absence rates, staff age profile, and spend on agency and bank. The latest publication was published in June and can be viewed here.
Sharing our messages
We appreciate the support of elected members in sharing our health messages with constituents and on social media.