Health Minister Nicola Sturgeon praised NHS Fife staff for doing a ”good job in difficult, trying conditions” as she officially opened the impressive new £170 million wing at Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy.
During Monday’s visit, Ms Sturgeon toured the intensive care unit, special care baby unit and maternity delivery areas, meeting staff and patients.
She told The Courier that staff now had the ”best hospital environment to deliver care” at a time when infections across the health service were ”radically reducing” and the Scottish Government was doing everything it could to protect pressurised NHS revenue budgets.
Ms Sturgeon said: ”It is fantastic to see the new wing of the Victoria Hospital open and treating patients in their local community, and to meet some of the patients who are benefitting from the new facilities.
”This is a prime example of how continued investment in our NHS is benefiting patients by providing them with quality care as close to home as possible.
”Having the right facilities in the right place is important to people across Scotland and that is why we are determined to ensure both staff and patients the length and breadth of the country can work and be treated in the best possible surroundings.
”Investment in health is a top priority for the Scottish Government and we have committed to spending over £2 billion on improving NHS infrastructure over four years.”
Regarding the latest complaint about hospital standards from the family of a patient, she said: ”That is not a money thing, just a basic issue of standards of care. On the upside, across the health service, infections in hospitals are radically reducing.
”I was in a ward today where they haven’t had a case of C diff for 36 months. You don’t get achievements like that if you are not providing good, clean, quality care.”
She added: “Unfortunately patients sometimes get an experience that is not good enough. When that happens I want the health board to act on those complaints. That’s why we’ve got such a robust complaints process.”
A wide range of departments are based in the new wing including accident and emergency, intensive care, maternity, children’s services, special care baby unit, cardiology, endoscopy, haematology and oncology, and renal.