soapbox!
air your views...
Most of the readers of this fine newspaper will be aware of the above establishment. Opened over a year ago, it offers the residents and visitors to Forth Valley a modern, clean and well equipped purpose built facility where specialist core services have now been centralised. My wife Mary and I have come to know it very well over the last couple of months! More so, we’ve come to know the road system between Lochearnhead and Larbert even better! Let me explain. My father-in-law, a very ‘with it’ 98-year-old was taken ill whilst staying with us. Following a quick visit to our GP in Callander we were told to take him straight to Larbert where he was admitted and for a couple of weeks it was rather touch-and-go as to whether he’d pull through. Fortunately he has now recovered, although it took us a further three weeks to finally get him into a home in Callander and thereby hangs another story. Prior to this he looked after himself and until a couple of years ago his wife, in their flat in Clevedon. Because of the various aspects associated with free care for the elderly here in Scotland and the fact that he had previously lived outside Bristol, Social Services need to be sure that ‘everything is in order’. All very understandable, although the fact that he will be self-funding is neither here nor there in their eyes, so for a three week period we went backwards and forwards between the Stirling and North Somerset getting no-where. Meanwhile a 98-year old man was practicing his ‘wall climbing’ in Forth Valley Hospital! Eventually, however, a place was found in Callander and he has now settled in pretty well. You have to ask though about the delays. Here was a man – though aged, fit and well, and able to leave Larbert for some respite care - but had to block a bed because we could not get any agreement from the Social Services that we could take him into a home. What is the sense in that? The nursing staff at Larbert have their hands tied because without the okay from the social department they cannot release a patient! Very much a case of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing! But this has set me thinking about ‘the system’. I’d be the first to agree that to have a superb facility such as Larbert is a necessary evil of this modern era. When this was first mooted discussions took place with local Community Groups about the difficulties that having this facility, placed where it now is, would present to those of us who live in this part of rural ‘Forth Valley’. We are fortunate in that we can share the workload
Forth Valley Royal Hospital, Larbert
of getting to and from Larbert – a round trip of some 90 miles. The access, however, is dreadful and we were promised better access off the motorway. Not so far! We both drive and we have family in Thornhill who will sometimes drive Mary to Larbert. I dread to think what we have paid out in additional fuel over this period, and as for our carbon footprint – well we have ruined that for the rest of our time in this world. But what of others who perhaps do not drive and have to call on friends, or indeed try and use public transport. And what of the ‘Social Services’ issue? Has anyone else been left climbing the wall trying to get things moving? Since writing the above, we have had a further incident over the last week. My father-in-law suffered a fall and upon investigation by one of the local GPs it was suggested that his hip should be x-rayed to ensure there was no break. On Monday afternoon he was collected by ambulance at around 2pm and taken to Larbert – the nearest x-ray facility! By 5.30pm he’d been x-rayed and given the all clear to return to the home in Callander. He was finally collected by an ambulance at 10.50pm that evening from the A&E department, arriving back in Callander at around 11.40pm. Is that anyway to treat anyone, let alone a 98-year old man? As a family we are appalled at the way he has been treated and complaints have been made to the Ambulance Service. To be blunt this is just not on. So I have a question for everyone who reads The Villagers. Have you or a family member had dealings with the Royal Forth Valley Hospital? Have you had problems either getting to and from, or have you had delays with ambulances? If you have, I’d like to hear from you in order that I can summarise the information and pass it on to our MSP Bruce Crawford who in turn can relay it to Nicola Sturgeon who looks after health issues here in Scotland. We read so much about sheep and cattle having to be released from the carrying vehicles after a number of hours of travelling. Do we have to put up with this as far as our own kith and kin are concerned? Certainly not! The purpose of this article is not to highlight the difficulties we have had but to create an element of awareness. So, if you’ve anything you’d like to refer to in relation to either getting to Out-Patient
appointments, visiting family or friends... whatever, good or bad, I’d be pleased to hear from you. Perhaps the editor will allow me to then present my summary for everyone to read, having of course already sent it to our local MPs, MSPs, etc. Everything will be treated in the strictest confidence and you can contact me at a.barclay@btinternet. com or on 01567 830453. I’ll now vacate AB my soapbox!
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