Emergency numbers

ELECTRICITY Scottish Power (all times) 0845 272 7999 Scottish Hydro-Electric (all times) 0800 300 999 GAS Transco Emergency (escapes) 0800 111 999 FIRE Central Brigade HQ 01324 716996 Stirling Fire Station 01786 472223 Alloa Fire Station 01259 724112 HOSPITALS Stirling Community Hospital 01786 434000 Falkirk Community Hospital 01324 624000 Forth Valley Royal Hospital 01324 566000 NHS HELPLINE 0800 22 44 88 (National free phone service. Information is covered by trained counsellors 8am-10pm, Mon-Sun) NHS24 111 POLICE Police Scotland Forth Valley Division, telephone 101 WATER Scottish Water 0845 600 8855 Floodline 0845 988 1188 ROADS/LIGHTING 0845 277 7000 DENTAL Patients not registered 01324 620999 DRUG AND ALCOHOL ABUSE Drugs Hotline 01786 456211 Addictions Support & Counselling 01786 450721 Signpost Recovery 0845 673 1774 RAPE CRISIS Central Scotland Rape Crisis 01786 471771 CHILDLINE SCOTLAND 0800 1111 CHILD DEATH HELPLINE 0800 282986 VICTIM SUPPORT Stirling and district 01786 445782 SAMARITANS Falkirk (24 hrs) 01324 622066 or 08457 909090 ALZHEIMER SCOTLAND Action on Dementia (24hrs) 0808 808 3000 WOMEN’S AID Alloa 01259 721407 Stirling 01786 470897 FAMILY MEDIATION Stirling 01786 472984 OPEN SECRET Stirling (childhood abuse) 01786 448504 CARERS CENTRE Stirling 01786 447003 PARKINSON’S Stirling 0808 800 0303 COUNCIL ON DISABILITY Stirling 01786 462178 ACTION IN MIND Stirling and district 01786 451203 SUNDAY CHEMISTS Boots, Thistle Centre; Sainsbury, Back o’Hill Road; and Tesco, Wallace Street, all Stirling are normally open. BUSINESS GATEWAY Business start-up advice 0845 609 6611

NHS Forth Valley last week issued a press release highlighting a new service to reduce the number of people who fail to turn up for their hospital outpatient appointment

Newly referred cardiology, ear nose and throat, endocrinology, ophthalmology and pain management patients will from now on receive a telephone call around seven days before the date of their outpatient appointment. Patients will be asked if they plan to attend or wish to change or cancel their appointment.

It is clearly alarming that, at a time when health chiefs are under pressure to meet waiting time targets, there are some outpatient clinics at which one in ten patients fails to show up.

However, there is another side of the story and one which I experienced last week.

I have an eye condition associated with advancing years and periodically attend a clinic at Falkirk Community Hospital, Majors Road.

My last appointment was some time ago and I have received notification of others which have been cancelled by the clinic.

The last letter I received was for an appointment on the afternoon of Wednesday, April 12, which I duly attended. However, after waiting for about 20 minutes a member of staff informed me that the appointment had been cancelled and there was, in fact, no clinic that day.

The staff member said I should have been sent out a fresh appointment but none had been received by me. Three days later I was notified by post of a fresh appointment.

I was understandably annoyed at having a wasted journey from Stirling to Falkirk but at least I was able to drive there and back. Falkirk Community Hospital is not the easiest place to get to so imagine having travelled there by public transport from Callander or Balfron, only to be told the appointment had been cancelled.

In an organisation as big as the NHS mix-ups with appointments will always occur but I would be interested to know whether this has happened to anyone else. Email john. rowbotham@trinitymirror.com, write to the Observer at 34 Upper Craigs, Stirling, FK8 2DW or telephone 01786 459412.

John Rowbotham Editor