"Very high standard of urgent and ongoing care..."

I just wanted to post a message about the excellent care I've received at Forth Valley Royal Hospital - probably from more departments than I can think of! I'll try to keep this short - could easily turn into a Nordic saga.

At the beginning of January I attended for a scan for kidney stones and discovered a stone had been blocking my kidney for years and it was done for. There was a danger from sepsis so within an hour I was in Radiology to have a drain put in. The staff in Radiology were amazing - cheerful, reassuring and thoroughly professional.

I was kept in for a few days, to make sure the infection was gone etc... the care I had on the surgical ward was exemplary; very reassuring as I now knew I'd be back to have the kidney removed.

Detailed scans and tests over the next few weeks confirmed the kidney is a passenger and has to go. On every single visit I made to the hospital I've never had an excessive wait (barely had to wait at all) and the staff have been wonderful. The consultant, Mr Lamb, took time to explain in detail what the problem was, the surgical options and recovery implications. He also contacted me (and my GP) by letter when the decision was made whether to use open or keyhole surgery.

Now I'm about to go in to have the kidney removed (3 days to go) and I think I'd be feeling a lot more worried about it if I hadn't benefited from the high standard of patient care. Can't deny I'm a bit apprehensive - but I can be certain that I'm in good hands and will receive the best of care, which goes a long way to reassuring me and my family.

After researching my condition online (information junkie) it's clear how lucky we are with our NHS - so many people in the U. S. and elsewhere unable to get the treatment they need.

A huge and heartfelt thanks to everyone at FVRH.