Belford Hospital
| Belford Hospital | |
|---|---|
| NHS Highland | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Fort William, Highland, Scotland |
| Organisation | |
| Care system | NHS Scotland |
| Hospital type | Rural general hospital |
| Affiliated university | University of Aberdeen |
| Services | |
| Emergency department | Yes |
| Helipad | Yes |
| Beds | 34 |
| History | |
| Founded | 1863 / 1965 [1] |
| Links | |
| Website | Official Website |
| Lists | Hospitals in Scotland |
Belford Hospital, locally known as The Belford, is a rural general hospital in Fort William, Lochaber, Scotland. It is run by NHS Highland. There are 34 inpatient beds and a 10-bedded day case unit.[2]
The Belford provides secondary care to a local population of around 20 000, which can swell up to 60 000 during the summer. Currently, there are Consultant-led general medical and general surgical services. A satellite surgical service is also provided in the Mackinnon Memorial Hospital in Broadford on Skye by surgeons from the Belford.
The emergency department sees around 9000 patients a year[3] making it one of the smallest in Scotland, however due to its proximity to the outdoor activity centres in the Lochaber region sees proportionally a significant amount of trauma prior to transfer to tertiary centres in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen. When the Scottish Executive looked at reorganising rural health care in 2004 there were clear reasons put forward to retain provision of an emergency service at the Belford.[4] Following this there were calls to work more closely with the Lorn and Islands Hospital in Oban.[5] In 2006, following the Kerr report, the Belford was designated a rural general hospital.[6]
At the end of November 2009 the surgical and medical wards were merged to form a Combined Assessment Unit (CAU).[7] There are specialist in-patients services for older people, which relocated from the hospital's Belhaven ward to the main building in 2010.[8]
There is also a midwife-led service to provide maternity care. In September 2009 it achieved stage 1 of the baby-friendly accredition programme.[9] Although equipped to perform antenatal ultrasound scans, this service hasn’t been offered at the Belford since June 2012, because of a national shortage of appropriately trained staff.[10]
References
- ↑ "Belford Hospital replacement is just what the doctor ordered". Lochaber News. Retrieved 2 Jan 2016.
- ↑ "Inspecting and regulating care: Belford Aug 14". Healthcare Improvement Scotland. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
- ↑ "Belford Hospital". NHS Highland. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
- ↑ Martin, Lorna (22 Aug 2004). "Mountain capital fights to save vital A&E unit". The Observer. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
- ↑ "Hospitals avoid service cutbacks". BBC News. 1 October 2004. Retrieved 9 June 2014.
- ↑ "A Bright New Future for Belford". NHS Highland. 7 February 2006. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
- ↑ "Belford Hospital Services Redesigned to Improve Delivery". NHS Highland. 23 November 2009. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
- ↑ "Plans for Belford Hospital ward change". BBC News. 28 June 2010. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
- ↑ "Belford Hospital, Fort William". Baby Friendly Initiative. Retrieved 12 June 2014.
- ↑ Munro, Alistair (24 April 2013). "Fort William mothers-to-be forced to travel for scan". The Scotsman. Johnston Press. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
External links
- Belford Hospital official webpage on NHS Highland website
Coordinates: 56°49′10″N 5°6′14″W / 56.81944°N 5.10389°W