Case Ref: 200701665 Forth Valley NHS Board

In this case the complainants raised concerns about the circumstances surrounding their mother's death.

In considering the complaint, the complaints investigator received a clear response from the Board to all points of enquiry. In addition, the SPSO's medical adviser said that he had not seen such a clear reply from the Board before. Everything was clearly and convincingly supported by clinical evidence. E.g. the description of a CT scan result and an MMSE score enabled the adviser to make significant conclusions about a diagnosis. The clinical information and dates provided in relation to a bacterial infection also enabled him to confirm that it did not contribute to the death of the complainants' mother.

In short, the quality of the information and supporting evidence provided in the response meant that the complaints investigator was able to give the complainants a full response withought sight of medical records, which was felt to be an efficient and effective way to deal with the complaint for all parties, especially the complainants who may otherwise have had to wait much longer for a conclusion.

This complaint did not progress to full investigation.