Frail older adults in Dumbarton and the Vale are having shorter stays in hospital and are less likely to be re-admitted, according to a hospital newsletter.

As part of these ongoing improvements, a new frailty practitioner post has been created. Craig Bowman took up this post 18 months ago, coming from a background in physiotherapy with experience working across NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

The aim of this new post is to improve the outcome of frail older adults who attend the Vale of Leven Hospital, and since then the hospital has seen a drop in seven day re-admission rates.

This story has been included as part of the Vale of Leven hospital first newsletter of dedicated news about the hospital and the latest developments to their stories.

“Vale News” aims to keep local residents up-to-date with local issues, developments around services and news about the staff which will be shared through their own channels and in conjunction with campaign group Hospitalwatch.

READ MORE: Campaign to save Vale of Leven Hospital in "partnership of trust" with health board

Professor Brown said: “The Vale of Leven Hospital plays a very important role in delivering excellent healthcare across West Dunbartonshire and it’s clear that staff take real pride in working there.

“As a board, we value our staff and I want to commend them, and the management team, for their commitment to treating our patients in a clean and welcoming environment.”

Other stories in the newsletter include their new person-centred visiting scheme – which means less restrictions on visiting hours – and how a Vale nurse helps to organise Gaza’s first cancer conference after her return from Palestine.

There will be up to six editions of the newsletter a year and it will also be available online through West Dunbartonshire Council website and Save the Vale Facebook page.