About the Hospital
The Lorn & Islands Hospital
Lorn and Islands hospital, opened in 1995, is a purpose-built acute hospital on the southern side of Oban. It offers acute services to Oban and the surrounding area, as well as medical and surgical services to the population of Argyll and Bute. It hosts visiting specialists from Glasgow and Inverness and serves as a hub for specialist treatment and diagnostic services for Argyll and Bute Community Health Partnership.
There are three wards, HDU facilities and a full rehabilitation facility, with a total of 62 beds. A 24/7 Accident and Emergency service is backed up by continuous medical, surgical and anaesthetic consultant cover and 24 hour theatre availability. The out-of-hours GP service operates from the hospital and is integrated with A&E.
Diagnostics include endoscopy, X-ray, ultrasound and CT, echocardiography and cardiac diagnostics, pulmonary function testing, and on-site 24 hour haematology, biochemistry and microbiology laboratories.
Chemotherapy is given in a new Macmillan unit, and there are dedicated Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy, Audiology, Podiatry and Community Paediatric units. The Oban Dental Centre is on the hospital site. Out patient clinics are listed elsewhere on the website.
Small is Better
Lorn and Islands Hospital is a small, closely-knit hospital that offers a well-defined range of services to a high standard. The hospital is closely integrated with the community it serves. These circumstances allow staff to offer the personalised care that can be difficult to achieve in a large unit. There is a strong tradition of team-working within the hospital and, again partly as a consequence of the size of the unit, there is a close working relationship between managerial, medical, nursing and other professional staff across the site. Specialist nurses are fundamental to the day-to-day working of the hospital, and the close integration of medical and nursing expertise ensures a rounded approach to patient care.
Our Record is Exemplary
The hospital is subject to the same regulation, inspection and audit as any other acute hospital in Scotland.
It is actively engaged in the Scottish Patient Safety Programme with proactive support from both clinical staff and management. The hospital has consistently performed well in HEI, OPAC and NES inspections.
In common with other hospitals in NHS Highland there is a continuous audit of inpatient performance and hospital mortality which is examined both internally and at Health Board level.
Why You Can Trust Us
The building is new, purpose-built and well-designed, and ensures a pleasant environment for patients and staff. There is close cooperation with hospitals in Paisley and Glasgow for conditions that cannot be managed in Oban, and an adjacent helipad enables prompt transfer of patients who require tertiary care.
The ethos of Lorn and Islands Hospital is to offer a closely defined range of services safely and to a high standard. Whilst we can never offer every service or procedure that may be required, we offer services that are needed most often in a safe, clean environment, by professionals dedicated to their community in an accessible local hospital.