Latest news with #MonklandsHospital
Daily Mail
19-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE REVEALED: Weight loss injections now linked to FIVE deaths in Scotland
Fat jabs have been linked to the deaths of five people in Scotland, including one reported to watchdogs this year. The prescription-only drugs, originally developed to suppress appetite among obese patients with type 2 diabetes, have become popular as a quick fix for people looking to lose weight. However, health watchdogs have received hundreds of reports from people who have become ill after taking them. In March, the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA) disclosed it had been notified 361 times since January last year of patients in Scotland who have suffered illness after taking the drugs. MailOnline recently reported that 12 Scots were taken to A&E between April 2023 and August 2024 with complications from weight loss injections in the same health board area where Britain's first fat jab victim died. Now, the watchdog has revealed details of the most serious cases linked to the drugs in Scotland, stating it has received five reports of fatalities. Three reports concerned patients using the medications for weight loss alone while a fourth patient had prescriptions to treat diabetes. Details of the fifth reported fatality were not provided. Nurse Susan McGowan became the first person in the UK whose death was directly linked to a weight-loss jab. She died at Monklands Hospital in Airdrie last September. The 58-year-old suffered organ failure, septic shock and pancreatitis after taking two jabs of 'prescribed tirzepatide', sold under the brand name Mounjaro. Dr Samantha Robson, a GP working in weight management, said it is important not to draw conclusions on the deaths without clear clinical context. She said the drugs can be 'transformational medications when used correctly, for the right patients, with the right support', but added that there are instances of people taking them improperly. She said: 'Many patients are accessing these medications privately—through clinics, prescribers, and worryingly, through unregulated online pharmacies and social media.' Dr Robson is the medical director of Temple Clinic in Aberdeen, which prescribes GLP-1 medications 'under strict medical supervision and with intensive support'. However, she said it is alarmingly easy for people to obtain them without proper assessment, supervision or education. 'I am aware of cases where patients with a history of eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa, are lying about their weight and health to access these drugs purely to suppress appetite and further restrict their intake. This is deeply dangerous. 'There are also growing reports of counterfeit medications being sold online—products that may be contaminated, contain no active ingredient, or in some cases may be resold used pens from patients who stopped the medication but are hoping to recoup some cost.' She added: 'These medications are not inherently dangerous — but unsupervised, unregulated use absolutely is. And if we continue to allow them to be used like crash diets in injectable form, the current headlines will be the tip of the iceberg. This is not just a public health issue — it's an ethical one.' MailOnline has previously revealed that black market seizures in Scotland of potentially dangerous weight loss drugs have soared. The MHRA is investigating whether a genetic trait puts some patients at greater risk of side effects. Dr Alison Cave, its chief safety officer, said: 'Patient safety is our top priority and no medicine would be approved unless it met our expected standards of safety, quality and effectiveness. 'On the basis of the current evidence, the benefits of GLP-1 medicines outweigh the potential risks when used for the licensed indications. The decision to start, continue or stop treatments should be made jointly by patients and their doctor, based on full consideration of the benefits and risks.'
Daily Record
09-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Record
Drone video of site of new Monklands Hospital released by NHS Lanarkshire
The video indicates where key aspects of the new hospital campus will be constructed by NHS Lanarkshire's Monklands Replacement Project. An exciting bird's-eye view of the site of the new Monklands Hospital has been released. The eye-catching drone video allows viewers to soar above the landscape at Wester Moffat in Airdrie that will become home to the replacement facility. The video, showing the former farmland beginning to transform through preparatory groundworks, indicates where key aspects of the new hospital campus will be constructed by NHS Lanarkshire's Monklands Replacement Project (MRP). It begins by highlighting the location of neighbouring Caldervale High School to enable orientation by the viewer. Fiona Cowan, MRP clinical lead for nursing, said: "It's inspiring to see the vast extent of the site and envisage where services and facilities will appear as Scotland's most advanced hospital takes shape. "As the camera flies across the landscape, captions pop up to show where future landmarks will be, including multi-storey and surface car parks, offering twice the number of spaces than the existing hospital. "We see the part of the site that will host a huge energy centre that will help drive our vision to create Scotland's first net zero hospital and power our ambitions for a fully digital facility. "The public and our staff can see the location of the wards. Then there's the emergency department, which will be working in tandem with a trailblazing 'assessment village' concept under our revolutionary model of care. "Other areas pointed out include critical care, which is among the services that will benefit from our clinical design advancements - supporting patients from all specialties who need enhanced levels of care and life support, and ensuring people at their sickest are looked after by the clinical teams with the right specialist knowledge. " Monklands is the home of cancer care in Lanarkshire so the area where the new cancer unit will be built is also highlighted." As the drone sweeps above, viewers can also catch a glimpse of the site compound and the heavy plant currently undertaking 'enabling works'. An incredible one million cubic metres of earth will be moved by MRP construction partner Laing O'Rourke as land is levelled off to provide a platform for the new hospital. The MRP is currently completing its final business case for Scottish Government approval, opening the way for hospital construction to start ahead of a scheduled opening in 2031.
Daily Record
05-06-2025
- Daily Record
Consultation on updated route of new East Airdrie Link Road starts this month
Information about the route and design of the road will be available online, and drop-in events will be held in Airdrie, Chapelhall and Cumbernauld. A consultation on the updated route of the new East Airdrie Link Road starts on June 16. Information about the route and design of the road will be available online, and drop-in events will be held in Airdrie, Chapelhall and Cumbernauld. Feedback from an engagement exercise last year has been incorporated into the updated route which will better integrate with local roads and lessen the impact on land, ecology, landscape and woodland. The single-carriageway road will run from just north of the M8, at the A73 Newhouse Interchange, to the A73 north of Stand and Riggend. It will also provide access to the replacement Monklands Hospital at Wester Moffat, Airdrie. North Lanarkshire Council is building the road as part of the Glasgow City Region City Deal. This latest consultation is being carried out as part of the Pre-Application Notice (PAN), the first stage in the process of applying for planning permission. Comments will inform the final road design for the planning application. Members of the project team will be available to discuss the plans at the drop-in events which take place between 2pm and 7pm on: Tuesday, June 17, in Airdrie Library. Thursday, June 19, in Chapelhall Library. Tuesday, June 24, in Cumbernauld Library. The East Airdrie Link Road is designed to improve: journey times and transport reliability; connections between residential areas, town centres, business centres, employment and education; and air quality, by relieving congestion along the existing A73. *Don't miss the latest headlines from around Lanarkshire. Sign up to our newsletters here. And did you know Lanarkshire Live had its own app? Download yours for free here.
Glasgow Times
10-05-2025
- Health
- Glasgow Times
NHS Lanarkshire celebrates grounds maintenance and biodiversity team
The team is part of NHS Lanarkshire's commitment to sustainability and the environment. They have been working across various sites, including Kirklands headquarters, Caird House, Monklands Hospital, and Udston CAMHS unit, to improve green spaces. Green Health Week runs from May 3 to 11. READ NEXT: 'Do you know who we are?': Pair knifed four strangers in less than two hours Craig Brown, head of sustainability and environmental performance at NHS Lanarkshire, said: "We are delighted to support Green Health Week by shedding light on the great work from the Grounds Maintenance and Biodiversity team. "NHS Lanarkshire is committed to improving our environmental sustainability, as well as making our sites a safe and clean place for staff, visitors and patients. "Our greenspace accounts for 36 per cent of our grounds, and it's great to be able to use these spaces as an opportunity to support, and positively impact, those who spend time there, as well as contribute to the planet, environment and wildlife." The green spaces provide homes for plants, insects, birds, and more, while also bringing health and wellbeing benefits to patients, staff, and visitors. READ NEXT: Warrant issued for woman who 'falsely claimed to be pregnant to extort £7k' Vicki Trim, Lanarkshire Green Health Partnership Lead at NHS Lanarkshire, said: "As an anchor institution, NHS Lanarkshire is working to provide good quality green spaces to improve biodiversity. "It also showcases how much patients – and the wider community - gain when we connect with different people, engage with the outdoors and gain the benefits these bring to our wellbeing, so it's a win-win for people and the planet." Tommy Whiteside, forensic support worker at NHS Lanarkshire, said: "We started up a gardening group in January at Caird House for inpatients as well as community patients. "The goal is to make the gardens a welcoming place for everyone to use as well as give our patients a sense of achievement in the project they have engaged with."
