Orkney, also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north of the coast of Caithness and has about 70 islands, of which 20 are inhabited. The largest island, the Mainland, has an area of 523 square kilometres (202 sq mi), making it the sixth-largest Scottish island and the tenth-largest island in the British Isles. Orkney's largest settlement, and also its administrative centre, is Kirkwall.
Kirkwall is the largest town in Orkney, an archipelago to the north of mainland Scotland.
Shapinsay is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. With an area of 29.5 square kilometres (11.4 sq mi), it is the eighth largest island in the Orkney archipelago. It is low-lying and, with a bedrock formed from Old Red Sandstone overlain by boulder clay, fertile. Consequently, most of the area is given over to farming. Shapinsay has two nature reserves and is notable for its bird life. Balfour Castle, built in the Scottish Baronial style, is one of the island's most prominent features, a reminder of the Balfour family's domination of Shapinsay during the 18th and 19th centuries; the Balfours transformed life on the island by introducing new agricultural techniques. Other landmarks include a standing stone, an Iron Age broch, a souterrain and a salt-water shower.
Caithness General Hospital is a rural general hospital operated by NHS Highland, located in Wick, Caithness, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Highland.
Raigmore Hospital is a health facility located in Inverness, Scotland. It serves patients from the local area as well as providing specialist services to patients from across the Highland area. It is a teaching hospital, educating a range of healthcare professionals in association with the Universities of Aberdeen and Stirling. It is managed by NHS Highland.
St Magnus Cathedral dominates the skyline of Kirkwall, the main town of Orkney, a group of islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. It is the oldest cathedral in Scotland, and the most northerly cathedral in the United Kingdom, a fine example of Romanesque architecture built for the bishops of Orkney when the islands were ruled by the Norse Earls of Orkney. It is owned not by the church, but by the burgh of Kirkwall as a result of an act of King James III of Scotland following Orkney's annexation by the Scottish Crown in 1468. It has its own dungeon.
Aberdeen Maternity Hospital (AMH) is a specialist maternity hospital in Aberdeen, Scotland. Between 4,000 and 5,000 babies are born at AMH each year. The hospital is located in the Foresterhill area of Aberdeen and serves the region of Grampian as well as the islands of Shetland and Orkney. It is managed by NHS Grampian.
Stobhill Hospital is located in Springburn in the north of Glasgow, Scotland. It serves the population of North Glasgow and part of East Dunbartonshire. It is managed by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.
NHS Orkney is an NHS board that provides healthcare services in the Orkney area of Scotland.
A rural general hospital is a small hospital, similar to a district general hospital, but is specifically trained and staffed to provide healthcare services in remote and rural areas. The concept was pioneered by NHS Scotland.
The Gilbert Bain Hospital is a rural general hospital in the burgh of Lerwick, Shetland, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Shetland.
Belford Hospital, locally known as The Belford, is a rural general hospital in Fort William, Lochaber, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Highland.
The Orkney Islands Council, is the local authority for Orkney, Scotland. It was established in 1975 by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and was largely unaffected by the Scottish local government changes of the mid-1990s.
The Galloway Community Hospital is a small hospital in Stranraer, Galloway, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Dumfries and Galloway.
Lorn & Islands Hospital is a rural general hospital on the southern outskirts of Oban in Argyll, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Highland.
Walsall Manor Hospital is an acute general hospital in Walsall, West Midlands managed by the Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust.
Vale of Leven District General Hospital or simply the Vale of Leven Hospital is a district general hospital in Alexandria, West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.
Elections to the Orkney Islands Council were held on 5 May 2022, the same day as the 31 other Scottish local government elections. The election used the six wards created under the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, with 21 councillors being elected. Each ward elected either 3 or 4 members, using the STV electoral system.
Bina Cursiter was a Scottish suffragist, who played a leading role in Orcadian Women's Suffrage Society, and helped to galvanise the organised women's movement in Orkney.
Eastbank Hospital was a health facility in Kirkwall, capital of the Orkney Islands. The hospital was managed by NHS Scotland until its closure in March 2000.
