As a large rural area with varied geography and several centres of population, there are particular challenges to meet the health needs for the people of Fife. The strategic aim has been to develop with our partners, particularly Fife council, integrated services accessible in as many localities as possible. The main acute hospital is the Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy serving a population of 368,080 with a bed base of 501 adult beds. The focus of the project was the improvement of patient experience by promoting independence and re-ablement in patients presenting with Frailty syndrome to the acute medical unit. We set out to design a model of care that utilizes all alternative pathways available to acute care to support patients as close to home as possible in line with NHS Scotland's 2020 vision.
Aim: Reduce LOS in >65s presenting to medical unit by 20% by August 2016.
