To cancel or change your appointment please telephone the number on your appointment letter. This may allow us to give your appointment time to another patient. Please do not attend if you think you could have COVID-19, flu or diarrhoea and vomiting.
If you fail to attend without telling the clinic in advance, we may return you back to the care of your GP. This is in line with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s Did Not Attend and Cancellation Policy.
Appointment reminder call
The hospital uses an automated voice system to remind you about your appointment. This system asks if you will be attending your appointment. If not, we will give your appointment to another patient.
If you do not wish to receive the reminder call, please contact us at the telephone number or email address included in your letter.
Help with specific needs
If you need help with any of the following please telephone the number on your appointment letter, before your appointment:
Sight, hearing or require an interpreter
Mobility, specialised equipment or any other need.
Attending an outpatient clinic
Outpatient check-in system
In some of our hospitals, we have a new patient check-in system for outpatients. This system uses a simple touch screen computer.
If you have any concerns or trouble using the new system you can ask one of the guides for help or go directly to the clinic reception desk.
Where the new system has not been installed, please go directly to the clinic reception desk to check-in.
When you arrive at the clinic
Please hand your appointment letter to the receptionist, who will direct you to the waiting area.
If clinics are running late we will tell you and give you an update.
What to bring with you
Your appointment letter
A note of all medicines you currently take including any vitamins, herbal, homeopathic or alternative remedies
Repeat prescription list (if any)
Any questions you may have for the doctor (You may want to write these down before you visit).
What to expect
Multiple clinics may run at the same time and may have different timings. This doesn’t mean you are taken out of turn
The length of an appointment can vary so please make sure you have time to wait in case of delays. At your appointment you may have tests carried out. If surgery is part of your treatment plan, your appointment may include a pre-operative assessment (a health check for your surgery) on the same day
You will see a consultant, a member of their team or a nurse. You may have a friend or relative present when you see them
If you need further appointments, we will discuss this with you
As soon as test results are known, we will contact your GP. Please check with your GP practice that they have your results before making an appointment
Some tests or scans are sent to your hospital consultant not your GP. We will tell you this at the time of your test or scan
You have a right to a second opinion. If you feel this is necessary please ask the consultant in charge of your care
If you wish, you can access your health records. A senior member of staff will be able to advise you how to do this.
Help with specific needs
If you need help with any of the following please telephone the number on your appointment letter, before you visit:
Sight, hearing or require an interpreter
Mobility, specialised equipment or any other need.
No smoking
The hospital operates a Smokefree Policy. This means no smoking in any NHS building, entrance, doorway, grounds or car park. This also includes the use of electronic cigarettes or the use of vaporisers.
Courtesy to staff
At your appointment, you can expect staff to treat you with dignity and respect. Equally, we expect our staff to be treated the same. Abusive or violent behaviour will not be tolerated and we will consider prosecuting any person whose behaviour is unacceptable.
Student teaching
An important part of our work in hospital is the teaching and training of students in medical, nursing and other professions.
You have a right to decide whether or not you wish to take part in student teaching or medical research. We will ask you about this before your consultation.
Outpatient facilities
Quiet Room
Most hospitals have a quiet room or sanctuary available places of peace, meditation and prayer. Everyone is welcome to use them.
Health information leaflets
Leaflets are available within the hospital on treatments, specific conditions and on health improvement. Please ask your nurse.
Café facilities
Please ask staff to direct you to the nearest Café or find more information here:
The Young Onset Dementia (YOD) Service is made up of two clinical psychologists, an occupational therapist (OT), a community psychiatric nurse (CPN), and secretarial support.
The team offer support to patients who have been diagnosed with dementia, and also work with and offer support to family members and carers. They provide a full post-diagnosis service to maximise the quality of life for patients, family members and carers.
About Young Onset Dementia
Dementia is an illness that affects the brain and a person’s ability to manage everyday activities. It can affect all aspects of thinking and feeling, and can cause changes in behaviour.
It is most common in older people, but around 3,000 people in Scotland under the age of 65 will have dementia, including people in their 40s and 50s, or even younger.
When this happens to someone under 65 it is usually called young onset or early onset dementia.
People with learning disabilities such as Down’s syndrome can also develop dementia. They are more likely to develop dementia in their 40s and 50s than the general population.
Dementia in younger people is often not recognised and the needs of younger people with dementia can be very different from those of older people. Younger people and their families are more likely to:
be in work, and therefore to need support to continue working or help when employment ends
have financial commitments including supporting children or young adults
need emotional support to cope with the diagnosis
have difficulties obtaining an accurate diagnosis
have one of the rarer forms of dementia
About dementia
There are many kinds of dementia, the most common being Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, frontotemporal dementia, and Lewy body dementia.
Younger people can have these forms of dementia but are also more likely to have rarer kinds. Dementia can also be present in other conditions such as motor neurone disease (MND), Parkinson’s disease, and multiple sclerosis.
What are the symptoms of dementia?
Each person with dementia will experience it differently. The symptoms depend on which areas of the brain are affected.
Some of the most common symptoms include memory difficulties and confusion about time and place.
The ability to think, reason, and make judgements can also be affected. Handling money and calculating may also become more difficult.
Conditions such as frontotemporal dementia cause early changes in personality and behaviour, although the person’s memory may not be badly affected.
What causes dementia?
We do not know exactly what causes dementia. Some forms of dementia, such as Huntington’s disease, are inherited. Younger people are more likely to have inherited forms of dementia but these are rare.
Most forms of dementia will be caused by a combination of genes and environment but the exact cause in any individual is very difficult to identify.
Alzheimer’s disease
Alzheimer’s disease damages individual brain cells, so that the brain can’t work as well as it used to.
A protein called amyloid builds up in deposits, called plaques, and tiny filaments in the brain cell form tangles. With Alzheimer’s disease there is usually a slow, steady progression of the illness.
Faulty genes may cause the build-up of the amyloid protein. Recent research seems to show that there may also be a genetic factor in other cases of Alzheimer’s disease.
However, this does not mean that someone whose parent had Alzheimer’s will automatically develop the disease.
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD)
This form of dementia is thought to be the second most common form of dementia in younger people.
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is a complex condition and difficult to diagnose. It is sometimes called ‘Pick’s disease’ although this name is used less often today.
It is not fully understood how this type of dementia develops. There seems to be an abnormal growth of some types of proteins in the brain cells affecting those parts of the brain responsible for decision making, emotion, language and control of behaviour.
In around 30% –50% of cases there may be a family history of this illness.
Vascular dementia
A problem with the blood supply to the brain can cause some people to have strokes which damage areas in the brain and can cause dementia.
Vascular dementia progresses in ‘steps’ and it is difficult to predict how it will develop. CADASIL is a rare inherited form of vascular dementia that affects younger people.
Information and support for younger people with dementia and their carers
Any person who is newly diagnosed with dementia should receive support from a named individual such as a healthcare worker or worker from a voluntary sector organisation for at least one year.
Alzheimer Scotland and NHS Health Scotland have produced a booklet and DVD called “Younger people with dementia: Living well with your diagnosis”, designed to give useful information to younger people and their families.
People with dementia and their carers were involved in the making of the DVD and can be seen talking about their experiences and offering suggestions on how to live well with dementia. Areas covered include: keeping well and connected; health; money; and work.
In Glasgow there are specialist services for younger people with dementia and these include:
Glasgow Younger Persons Support Service (GYPSS) Alzheimer Scotland Glasgow Younger Persons Support Service (GYPSS) 81 Oxford Street Glasgow G5 9EP
This service provides a range of supports including:
Link Workers who will maintain regular contact with the person with dementia and their family and who can provide information and emotional support.
A counsellor providing person centred counselling to the person with dementia and/or their carers.
Group work – groups supporting people with dementia including time limited therapeutic groups, carers groups and carer education.
A home support service offering one-to-one support for the person with dementia in his or her own home or in the community.
Day services – a small group of people with dementia supported on a Tuesday and a Friday from the Oxford Street premises.
Young Onset Dementia Service (NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde)
It is recognised that younger people with dementia may have more complex needs than others and require additional support. Within NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde, younger people may be referred, by their Community Mental Health Team, to a specialist service (the Young Onset Dementia Service) which has been set up to provide additional input for patients under 65 years of age, and /or their family members or carers.
Advice and guidance on all aspects of dementia is available to anyone through Alzheimer Scotland’s 24 hour Freephone Dementia Helpline on 0808 808 3000, and from local Alzheimer Scotland services.
This information has been prepared to provide information for people with dementia, and for their carers.
WestMARC, West of Scotland Mobility and Rehabilitation Centre, serves a population of approximately 2.6 million people and has in excess of 42,000 active wheelchair and prosthetics patients.
The Prosthetics Service measures for, manufactures and fits artificial limbs for adults and children with amputation or limb absence. Clinics are conducted at Westmarc and at our satellite clinic at Ayr Hospital to provide new limbs and carry out maintenance and repairs for existing limb users.
We have an onsite workshop where our technical team manufacture and repair new and existing artificial limbs. This service works with Strathclyde University to provide placements for students. There are also close links to Finding Your Feet, a charity who support families affected by amputation or limb absence.
The Prosthetics service provides upper and lower limb care to approximately 52% of Scotland’s population. Our clinics deliver life long prosthetic care for individuals with amputation and/or congenital absence of a limb. This may include patients with multiple level limb absence and/or complex clinical requirements.
There is an on-site workshop where our technical team manufacture and repairs new and existing limbs. We provide medical clinics and a multidisciplinary clinic where new patients and referrals, approximately 300 per year, are assessed.
The inpatients for this service are mainly based at The Queen Elizabeth University Hospital whilst outpatients, approximately 3,500, come mainly from Greater Glasgow & Clyde, Argyll, forth valley, Lanarkshire, Dumfries & Galloway and some other Scottish Health Boards.
Patient referrals are received by the service from:
Primary patient referrals from the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital or other hospitals.
Self referrals from existing patients and or carers.
Referrals from GPs, Consultants and other Health Care Professionals
WestMARC serves as one of the locations for the Specialist Prosthetics Service. It is responsible for the assessment, prescription and provision of state-of-the-art (SOTA) prostheses. A single multidisciplinary team based over two sites, WestMARC and the SMART centre at Astley Ainslie Hospital in Edinburgh, deliver this national service for eligible limb users.
The Prosthetic Physiotherapy Service
We work very closely with the prosthetics service to provide specialist outpatient physiotherapy care for patients who have an amputation or limb loss. This includes exercise programmes, teaching patients how to put on and off their prosthetic limb, learning how to walk and do functional tasks such as the stairs.
If you are referring a patient for a physiotherapy review only, please complete the Prosthetic service referral and write on the top *For Physio Only* and this highlights to our administration staff that the patient requires physiotherapy review prior to primary clinic.
If you have any queries or concerns, please contact the department for further advice.
Physiotherapy Information
The aim of our service is to provide a high quality, specialist outpatient physiotherapy service for new and established adult and paediatric patients who have had an amputation or limb loss.
The Team
Joanne Hebenton – Team Lead Physiotherapist
Nikki Porteous – Specialist physiotherapist
Damien McGovern – Specialist Physiotherapist
Grace Ferguson – Specialist Physiotherapist
Lorraine Douglas – Support worker
Rotational Physiotherapist
What We Do
We aim to make patients as independent as possible whilst taking a goal centred approach. Gym sessions are held Monday to Friday which facilitates patients to use their prosthetic limb and improve their walking or transfers. Patients can also be provided with a home exercise programme for their walking, strength and balance.
We also have close links with the 3rd sector and work closely with Finding your Feet which are a Scottish based charity supporting people after amputation or limb loss finding your feet and Scottish Disability Sport Scotland among others. The department is involved nationally, in promoting and developing expertise in prosthetic physiotherapy practice, education, research and audit.
Our custom built gym and courtyard facility is based within WestMARC. We share these facilities and work closely with the wider multidisciplinary team such as the Occupational Therapist, Prosthetists, Nurses, Clinical Psychologist and Bioengineers.
Other services we provide are:
Information support groups
Group exercise classes
Running class
Pre amputation consultations
Gait laboratory assessments
Multidisciplinary paediatric clinics
Assessment for suitability for a prosthetic limb
Osseointegration service
Training and assessment for those referred to the Scottish Specialist Prosthetic Service which provides advanced prosthetic components via a national panel
Instructional videos on transfers for new amputees
WestMARC Physiotherapy staff along with team at Finding You Feet some instructional videos on transfers for new amputees.
Bed to Upright
Wheelchair to bed with board
Bed to wheelchair with board
Wheelchair to bed with pillow
Bed to wheelchair with pillow
The Environmental Control Service
Provides services to patients within NHSGGC. This service enables people with severe disabilities to independently control their home environment including door-entry, intercom, telephony, a-v equipment, heating and lighting.
This service supports patients with complex gait problems by integrating the assessment and planning of medical, therapy and orthotic interventions making use of a range of simple and complex gait analysis equipment.
Telephone: 0300 790 0129 (Monday to Friday 8.45 am to 4:15 pm) WestMARC Yoker depot and the WestMARC Motherwell Hub are open for drop in repairs Monday to Friday 9.00 am to 3.45 pm.
Prosthetics
Telephone: 0300 790 0129 (Monday to Friday 8.45 am to 4:15 pm)
Physiotherapy
Team Lead Physiotherapist: Joanne Hebenton Telephone number: 0300 790 0129 E-mail: westmarc.physiotherapy@ggc.scot.nhs.uk Service hours: Monday to Friday, 8.30am-4.30pm
Complaints
If you wish to raise your concerns about a service which WestMARC has provided, please contact us through the Call Centre on 0300 790 0129 so that a record can be made of the issues.
WestMARC aims to provide a high standard of service and therefore welcome the opportunity to discuss any areas of shortfall to resolve any issues before unnecessary distress is caused resulting in a formal complaint.
For more information about the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde complaints procedure, please visit our Complaints page.
Find Us
WestMARC at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Glasgow
WestMARC Wheelchair and Prosthetics Service Queen Elizabeth Hospital, 1345 Govan Road, Govan, G51 4TF
Drop in repairs available Monday to Friday 9am – 3:45pm. The Motherwell hub is a smaller unit and we are unable to hold all parts, please call 0300 790 0129 in advance to confirm parts are in stock to complete the repair.
Care Opinion is about honest and meaningful conversations between patients and health services. We believe that your story can help make WestMARC services better. If you as a patient yourself or as a carer experienced care from WestMARC we would value your feedback good or bad, we appreciate your honesty. Please follow the link Care Opinion or call 0800 122 3135.
If you’ve experienced WestMARC Services recently, either as a patient yourself or as a carer or friend of someone else, please tell us how it was. What was good? What could have been better?
Your story will be handled confidentially by the non-profit service Care Opinion. Your story may appear (without your name) on their website. Care Opinion will ask WestMARC to respond to the feedback you share, but does not reveal your identity.
This service is independent of WestMARC and the NHS. For more information about Care Opinion and how your story is handled, visit www.careopinion.org.uk.
What is Spiritual Care?
There is a part of us that can seek to discover meaning, purpose or hope in those aspects of our experience that matter most to us. This is often referred to as ‘spirituality’, informing our personal values and beliefs, and affirming that tears, laughter, pain and joy are all part of the human experience. Spiritual care is integral to the holistic person-centred care offered by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. The spiritual care team is an inclusive part of health and social care teams who work alongside us and in partnership with other healthcare professionals.
‘Spirituality is central to our health and well-being. Spiritual well-being encompasses the physical, psychological, social and spiritual elements that connect to our individual response and reaction to life events such as joy, sadness, health, illness, birth and death. Spiritual care recognises and responds to the needs of the human spirit, and begins with encouraging human contact in a compassionate relationship, and moves in whatever direction need requires.’ (Adapted from Spiritual Care Matters, NES, 2021.)
Who We Are
NHSGGC registered chaplains are trained professionals who offer confidential, compassionate, inclusive, non-judgemental, person-centred spiritual, emotional and bereavement care and support for all hospital communities in our health board.
The spiritual care team are available to support and listen to everyone, including family and friends, staff, students and volunteers – this includes people of all backgrounds, faiths and no religious beliefs, who have equal access to the spiritual care service.
Chaplains in the Spiritual Care Service can support you by providing care that meets your needs. This may include:
Offering an inclusive, caring, confidential space for you to reflect or talk openly about whatever is on your mind
Listening sensitively to your story and all that you are going through, for example by helping you celebrate life events and / or mark times of remembrance
Dealing with a new diagnosis or difficult news
Helping to nurture hope for some and build resilience, for example if you feel anxious or afraid, or you are experiencing a significant life event
Facilitating prayer and rituals including liaising with different faith and belief groups if required by you
Signposting you or your family/friends to additional sources of support with your consent, for example if you are affected by bereavement or loss
Advocating on your behalf to support your physical, spiritual, emotional and/or mental wellbeing, for example if you are affected by stress.
NHSGGC Sanctuaries
Sanctuaries are available at many of our NHSGGC hospital sites. They are neutral, non-religious spaces available for everyone to use at any time of day or night and provide:
“Occupational therapy helps you live your best life at home, at work – and everywhere else. It’s about being able to do the things you want and have to do.” Royal College of Occupational Therapists, (2023).
Occupations are all the activities of daily living that you need, have and want to do. Everything from getting washed and dressed in the morning, to going to work or school, to hobbies and leisure activities.
What do occupational therapists do?
Occupational therapists work with anybody who is having difficulty doing their occupations. Occupational therapists support people to recover and overcome barriers which are stopping them from doing what matters to them. We aim to empower you to actively participate in meaningful occupations to improve your mental and physical health and wellbeing.
Find out how occupational therapists help people to live and not just exist.
Occupational therapy has the power to transform lives.
How can occupational therapists help?
Occupational therapists consider the person, the occupation and the environment. We look beyond diagnosis and limitations and focus on what matters to you. We look at the occupation and the environment to support you to make changes to help you to participate more. Therapeutic interventions will focus on daily activities that matter to you. We might also help you to adapt your home, school and work environments. We may provide aids/equipment if/when it is needed.
Who do occupational therapists work with?
We all engage in occupations from the day we are born and then continue to do so throughout our life span. Therefore, occupational therapists work with children and adults of all ages with a wide range of conditions and differences. You can find out more about the different occupational therapy teams including how to contact them below:
Acute Adult Services
Occupational therapists work across the hospital sites and in different specialities. The best way to contact your occupational therapist is by contacting the ward or department. You can find ward contact information on the Main Hospitals page.
Children and Young People
Occupational therapists working with children and young people work in three teams:
Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
Specialist Community Paediatric Teams
Royal Hospital for Children.
You can find out more about children and young people’s occupational therapy and how to contact them on KIDS.
Learning Disability
Occupational therapists work within both community and in-patient Learning Disability Services. They are based in sites across NHSGGC.
In-patient Learning Disabilities
Blythswood House
Fulbar Lane, Renfrew , PA4 8NT
Tel: 0141 314 9201
Claythorn House Ward
Gartnavel Royal Hospital, 1055 Great Western Road, Glasgow, G12 0YH
Occupational therapists work as part of multidisciplinary Rehabilitation Teams based in each Health and Social Care Partnerships across NHSGGC. Please choose you local authority and look for occupational therapy or rehabilitation teams on their websites.
Occupational therapists work in Social Work Teams based in Health and Social Care Partnerships. Occupational Therapists are linked to home care, housing, aids, adaptations and third sector supports. Please choose your local authority and look for occupational therapy, equipment or adaptations on their websites.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is committed to providing high quality care and treatment to our patients, and excellent service to others who use its services. Your feedback helps us build on what works well and improve what could be better.
Feedback
We encourage sharing feedback with staff delivering care, but offer various other ways for you to tell your story. It’s important to us that you can share your feedback about NHSGGC at a time and place you feel comfortable. You can find out more on our Share your feedback page.
Complaints
We understand, that sometimes things go wrong. If something goes wrong or if you are dissatisfied with something we have done, or have not done, please tell us and we will do our best to put things right. If we cannot resolve matters in the way you want, we will explain why it is not possible to do as you suggest. Find out more about our Complaints procedure or for further advice on how to make a complaint, please contact us via:
Phone: 0141 201 4500
E-mail: Complaints@ggc.scot.nhs.uk
How to become an occupational therapist
If you are interested in a career in occupational therapy you can find out more on the NHS Scotland Careers and ChooseOT websites.
There are 7 sites across the city of Glasgow with a Nuclear Medicine Department, 4 of these sites also have a speciality service. These departments perform both diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.
Links to specific sites can be found in ‘Information for Patients’ and ‘Sector / Site Contact Details’ below:
The Mortuary provides comprehensive mortuary services for adults and children in NHSGGC.
There is a mortuary at each of our main hospital sites and is generally located on level 0.
The mortuary is staffed 24 hours a day. Viewings are by appointment only.
What is microbiology?
The Clinical Microbiology service for Greater Glasgow and Clyde is delivered from 2 laboratories based at Glasgow Royal Infirmary and Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.
Each laboratory provides a full and comprehensive microbiology service to the population of Glasgow and Clyde. The laboratories are accredited by UKAS to ISO15189 and provide a modern diagnostic service which includes:
Microscopy – the use of microscopes to view samples
Culture – a method of growing microbial organisms under controlled laboratory conditions
Antimicrobial susceptibility testing – this helps determine the best treatment options.
Virology is the scientific discipline concerned with the study of the biology of viruses and viral diseases, including the distribution, biochemistry, physiology, molecular biology, ecology, evolution and clinical aspects of viruses.
Lymphoedema is a condition where a part of the body, usually a limb, swells up because there is a problem with lymph drainage.
A successful kidney transplant offers the best treatment for kidney failure and a living donor transplant can offer the best outcomes. The Living Donor Transplant Coordinators are based at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital. They are a team of specialist nurses whose job it is to assess and support potential living kidney donors throughout the whole process.
If you would like to discuss anything further or be considered as a living donor, please get in touch with the team using the contact details below.
