Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal recently visited NHS Lanarkshire’s Flow Navigation Centre Plus (FNC Plus), where she saw first-hand how the service is coordinating urgent care across the system.
Her Royal Highness was accompanied by Vice Lord Lieutenant Gavin Whitefield CBE DL and Depute Provost of South Lanarkshire Bert Thomson as part of the official party visiting the centre.
Based at Kirklands Hospital in Bothwell, FNC Plus operates as a 24/7 control hub, bringing together nurses, paramedics, GPs, consultants, Allied Health Professionals and support staff to manage demand in real time and make rapid, informed decisions about patient care.
Handling around 7,000 calls each month, the service supports hundreds of patients every week to avoid unnecessary hospital admission, connecting them instead to services such as virtual wards, Hospital at Home and community teams.
During the visit, The Princess Royal was shown how teams work alongside partners from Primary Care, the Scottish Ambulance Service and NHS 24 to assess demand and coordinate care across services. She recognised the strength of the multidisciplinary approach, noting the emphasis on coordination, clinical judgement and supporting patients in the most appropriate setting.
Louise Long, Chief Executive of NHS Lanarkshire (pictured above) said: “We were pleased to welcome Her Royal Highness and to share the work of our teams. Flow Navigation Centre Plus reflects a clear focus on delivering care that is both clinically effective and centred on people’s needs. It is a privilege to lead an organisation where staff continue to develop and improve how care is delivered.”
Claire Ritchie, Interim Director of Interface Services (pictured above) said: “This was an opportunity to demonstrate how the approach works in practice for our patients in our communities. Our teams are working across the health and care system every day – combining clinical expertise with real-time decision-making to support as they navigate what are often the most vulnerable moments of their lives.”
In a vote of thanks, NHS Lanarkshire Chair Katharina Kasper (pictured main) said: “Flow Navigation Centre Plus reflects the values that underpin our organisation – care, compassion, dignity, teamwork and respect. Its strength lies in the people who deliver it, and the consistency with which those values are applied in practice.”
During the visit, Her Royal Highness met a range of staff, including:
- Bernie Harvie, Service Manager, Flow Navigation Centre Plus;
- Ceri Wares, Advanced Paramedic Practitioner, Scottish Ambulance Service;
- Dr Gordon McNeish, Associate Medical Director and Consultant in Emergency Medicine ;
- Tracey Miller, Nurse, Flow Navigation Centre Plus;
- Hazel Mitchell, General Manager, Interface Directorate;
- Laura McCabe, Senior Nurse, Flow Navigation Centre Plus
The visit also included a discussion with Margaret Moncrieff, a leading advocate for lived experience, whose work continues to strengthen the voice of patients and carers in shaping services.
A plaque marked the visit.
Fact file
- Established in 2020 as a two-person GP team, FNC Plus has developed into a central coordination hub linking acute hospitals, primary care, community health, social care, the Scottish Ambulance Service, NHS 24, voluntary partners and digital services into a single, coordinated response.
- A short film produced by NHS Lanarkshire offers a behind-the-scenes look at the service and the teams working around the clock to support patient flow. Behind-the-scenes film reveals the 24/7 team helping keep care flowing | Videos & Movies on Vimeo
- The approach is now informing work elsewhere, with NHS Lanarkshire recognised nationally and internationally for its development of integrated, people-centred urgent care.
- This integrated model is now being replicated across Scotland, with Lanarkshire recognised nationally and internationally as a leader in people-centred urgent care.
