Hospital Services
Balfour Hospital
About the Hospital
The Balfour Hospital is situated near the centre of Kirkwall. It is a small community hospital with up to 70 beds.
Wards
There are six wards, a day hospital and a day surgery unit:
- Acute Ward
- Receiving Area
- Maternity Ward
- Assessment and Rehabilitation Ward
- Orkney Macmillan Unit
- Day Surgery Unit
- Day Hospital
Surgical Services
Three consultant surgeons provide general surgical services to the islands, in conjunction with three consultant anaesthetists, and provide planned and emergency care.
Departments
The Hospital has both a Physiotherapy Department and a Occupational Therapy Department, together with a Casualty and Outpatients Department, Audiology, Radiography (X-Ray) a Pharmacy, the Laboratory, Medical Records, and a Central Decontamination Unit.
Patients requiring specialist treatment are sent to the Scottish mainland, usually Aberdeen.
Outpatient Specialist Clinics
Specialist Outpatients clinics are provided by a dedicated team of visiting consultants who visit the islands at regular intervals - usually once every two or three months.
Day cases in ophthalmology, orthodontics, gynaecology and Ear, Nose and Throat are carried out locally, saving the patient a trip to Inverness or Aberdeen.
Other Facilities
The Balfour Hospital has its own kitchen and laundry. There is a hospital chapel, and volunteers from the WRVS run a small shop for staff and patients.
