Sustained progress is critical for NHS Forth Valley, says auditors

Audit Scotland says some progress has been made at NHS Forth Valley since it was placed in special measures by the Scottish Government but sustained progress is critical. (Pic: Michael Gillen)

Audit Scotland said that NHS Forth Valley has “responded well” since the Scottish Government took formal oversight of the board’s work, but added it is critical that the health board continues to make progress.

The Scottish Government put in place an assurance board at NHS Forth Valley in November 2022 to drive improvement. The decision was taken after the health board’s leaders were unable to tackle a range of performance related issues.

Serious concerns had repeatedly been raised about patient safety by Healthcare Improvement Scotland and the Scottish Government had also noted concerns about a range of NHS Forth Valley’s services, including out of hours care, unscheduled care and mental health.

Auditors noted that the board has made progress since agreeing an improvement plan.

Progress since concerns were raised about the performance have included board leaders taking part in a Culture Change and Compassionate Leadership programme; the chair of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde undertaking an independent review of the Board and Assurance Committee governance arrangements and new performance management meetings put in pace for board directorates and Health and Social Care Partnerships to manage and monitor performance.

However, auditors said it is unclear how required improvements in urgent and unscheduled care will take place and they said the picture around psychological therapies and children’s mental health is “extremely challenging”.

Audit Scotland said the leadership team at NHS Forth Valley remained largely consistent during 2022/23, but the chief executive announced her intention to retire in September. An interim chief executive has been appointed, who was formerly chief nursing officer for the Scottish Government and chief executive of NHS Grampian.

Stephen Boyle, Auditor General for Scotland, said: “The board has responded positively to the escalation framework and has put appropriate governance arrangements in place. It is critical that sustained progress is made under the new leadership and sufficient resources are in place to drive forward the changes needed.”

It was also noted that many of the financial challenges faced by NHS Forth Valley are also being felt by other boards across Scotland.