TWO wards in Forth Valley Hospital specialising in mental health have been awarded accreditation status by the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCP).

Wards two and three in the mental health unit join only two other facilities in Scotland that have managed to obtain the award.

The wards at Forth Valley had to meet almost 300 standards to demonstrate their commitment to delivery of high quality care and treatment.

Dr Jim Crabb, NHS Forth Valley’s associate director for mental health and consultant in general adult psychiatry, commended the staff for their achievement.

He said: “Like the rest of the population, local staff have been impacted personally and professionally by the Covid-19 pandemic, but they continued to work tirelessly to care for some of the most vulnerable members of society.

ELITE: Forth Valleys mental health wards become one of the few to be accredited by the RCP.

ELITE: Forth Valley's mental health wards become one of the few to be accredited by the RCP.

“The fact that they have managed to develop a demonstrably excellent service and achieve accreditation whilst facing the many challenges of the last two years is simply awe inspiring.

“In addition to the RCP accreditation, we also recently received a letter of commendation from NHS Education for Scotland regarding the outstandingly positive feedback we have received from our medical trainees.

“The fact our trainees feel so well supported reflects extremely well on local mental health services in NHS Forth Valley.”

Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a stark increase in the number of people admitted to hospital for mental health treatment.

An event was organised to celebrate the accreditation and thank all the staff involved in helping to achieve the award.