The NHS marked its 75th anniversary last week with the role of the Vale of Leven – the service’s first purpose-built hospital to open – hailed locally.
Built between 1951 and 1955, the Vale was created in the face of post-war financial constraints because it formed a part of the Civil Defence Programme – initiated in response to the Cold War.
In the early 1950s Glasgow was considered likely to be a prime target in the event of war breaking out, with plans made for the potential evacuation of all hospitals in Glasgow and the surrounding area.
It was envisaged that existing hospitals could serve as ‘cushion hospitals’, but there was nothing available for the area to the north-west of Glasgow.
And Alexandria was identified as the ideal location for the new, purpose-built, NHS facility.
War helped shape the design too, with the horizontal shape of the Vale designed to survive the blast of an atomic bomb being dropped on HMNB Clyde at Faslane.
The hospital was designed to accommodate 150 patients, and was built in a way that it could be easily extended – either outwards, or by building on top of the flat roof of the original building.
Five decades after it was opened however, the Vale faced a crisis – with thousands lining the streets to hit-out at cuts introduced by the then Labour government, which saw A&E services removed from the Vale – and others, including maternity, scaled back or relocated to Paisley’s Royal Alexandra Hospital.
Paying tribute to the role the community has played in keeping the Vale from closure during its time of need, Jim Moohan from the Hospitalwatch campaign group, said: “Our hospital in Alexandria has been a credit to the NHS since it opened in the 1950s.
“It was decimated for financial reasons and wasn’t supported properly.
“If someone had asked me in 2000 for the community’s views on the hospital, I don’t think they would’ve been all that strong.
“But in 2004 when the first attack came on A&E services, that’s when the community woke up to defend their hospital.
“Since then, whenever the hospital has been under attack from the Government, the community has been there with us every single time.
“People are very switched on and know full well that the Vale is vital to the wellbeing of everyone’s family in this area. Young and old.
“If it has to come to the forefront again then I know that the public will be there.
“I’d be very confident, as chair of Hospitalwatch, if I went to the community and said we needed their support that they would be there.
“They will stand up for things that should never have been touched in the first place.
“The A&E should never have been touched. I know there has to be financial prudence, but the population here needs that infrastructure.
“We’ve got the hospital working as well as it can. For now. The challenge is to improve the hospital’s services.”
Jim says he believes that the NHS must adapt to ensure it reaches its 100th birthday, and has called for the Vale to play a key role in that locally.
He continued: “To survive 75 years is fantastic. The loss of life without the NHS isn’t worth thinking of.
“It’s been absolutely fantastic for everyone across the UK and it’s a credit to all the staff who have worked in it over those 75 years.
“I have to qualify that though by saying we are now at a stage where we have to reconfigure the NHS services.
“There are too many fractures appearing in the system relating to waiting times, recruitment of staff, facilities and so on.
“It has to be pulled together again to make sure it remains as strong as it has been.
“It’s still working well, but the waiting times and lack of staff has somewhat tarnished its image.
“There has to be changes to that structure to ensure that itcan move forward for the next 25 years.
“When the Vale of Leven Hospital was built, it was designed as a cushion in the event of the Cold War breaking out.
“Thankfully that didn’t happen. But it could still be a cushion in 2023 and moving forward for the bigger hospitals.
“We can assist and complement it by doing more in Alexandria. Because the work facing hospitals will not lessen over the next 25 years. We have an ageing population.
“We want to see senior management meeting with the hospital and asking what they could do more of.”
Melanie McColgan, Clyde sector director at NHSGGC, said: “I am personally proud to be part of the NHS and it is the staff I work with every day, from doctors and nurses to ward clerks and domestics that make me really proud.
“These past few years have been some of the most challenging any of us have known, and for our teams to continue to deliver great care, with dignity, humility and good humour, fills me with nothing but the greatest admiration.
“The NHS is a wonderful institution, and the fact it is still held in such high regard by the public after 75 years is testament to the hard work and commitment of all those staff who have dedicated their lives to helping others throughout the years.”
And Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie, Labour’s health spokesperson, said: “The National Health Service is our nation’s proudest and most important achievement and was born from the rubble and ruin of the Second World War.
“Our NHS which Labour delivered has supported the people of Britain for 75 years and, with it, has brought longer life expectancy, greater health security and equality.
“This is vitally important in the local area throughout West Dunbartonshire, in particular, where many people are living in poverty.
“The Vale of Leven Hospital has a rich history, being the first new hospital to be completed in Britain under the newly-formed NHS.
“Given that, it is vitally important that both NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and the Scottish Government on this special anniversary provide a commitment to retaining and developing the facilities that we have which help deliver vital healthcare to people across our communities.”
