Media Release: Inspection report for Stratheden Hospital, NHS Fife
Healthcare Improvement Scotland today (Thursday 11 June) published a report relating to a Mental Health Services Safe Delivery of Care inspection at Stratheden Hospital, NHS Fife. The inspection took place between 27 – 29 January, 2026.
Our safe delivery of care inspections of adult mental health services aim to take account of the changing risk considerations and sustained service pressures currently across NHS Scotland.
During our inspection to the Mental Health Unit of Stratheden Hospital, we inspected six wards, spoke to staff and patients and reviewed policies and procedures.
Speaking of the Stratheden Hospital report, Donna Maclean, Chief Inspector, Healthcare Improvement Scotland, said:
“During our inspection we observed staff treating patients with warmth, care and compassion. Despite ongoing staffing challenges, ward staff were working hard to provide safe delivery of care to patients.
“Staff we spoke with across all areas inspected consistently reported significant and sustained understaffing and told us they didn’t feel listened to when raising concerns about staffing levels.
“NHS Fife has requested, and is receiving, support from Healthcare Improvement Scotland’s Healthcare Staffing Programme to strengthen assurance around safe and effective staffing and to support consistent, evidence‑based workforce decision making.
“We wrote to NHS Fife to raise concerns relating to the poor completion of some essential staff mandatory training including violence and aggression, basic life support, falls and fire training. Senior managers responded with a plan to address training gaps.”
Chief Inspector, Healthcare Improvement Scotland
Other areas for improvement included staff appraisals, completion of ligature risk assessments and the accurate and timely completion of patient documentation.
Eddie Docherty, Director of Quality Assurance and Regulation at Healthcare Improvement Scotland, said:
“Our previous mental health inspection programme was focused on infection prevention and control. It was agreed with Scottish Government to widen the inspection focus from infection prevention and control to a broader assurance function, creating a new and revised ‘safe delivery of care’ assurance model in NHS adult mental health units.
“We believe it is important to provide public assurance that adult mental health units in Scotland are safe for patients and staff, provide quality person-centred care, with clear leadership and a focus on improvement.”
Director of Quality Assurance and Regulation, Healthcare Improvement Scotland
The Stratheden Hospital inspection resulted in six areas of good practice, no recommendations and 18 requirements.
An improvement action plan has been developed by NHS Fife to meet the requirements.
The full inspection report is available to view at: https://www.healthcareimprovementscotland.scot/publications/stratheden-hospital-mental-health-safe-delivery-of-care-inspection-report-june-2026/
Ends
Notes to editor
This report is part of Healthcare Improvement Scotland’s programme of inspections and reviews.
Healthcare Improvement Scotland’s statutory role is to help improve the quality of health and care, provide information to the public about the quality of health and care services, monitor public involvement, and to evaluate and provide advice on the clinical and cost-effectiveness of medicines and health technologies.