NHS Borders has apologised to a patient after issues were identified with their treatment.

The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) published its findings into the case this week.

According to the report, the patient – referred to as ‘A’ – underwent a bladder examination which caused bleeding for nine days and left them permanently incontinent.

Complaints were made that NHS Borders had no urology specialists available over the period of A's procedure and that this caused a delay in recognising the symptoms and their significance.

READ MORE: Borders man made Nazi salutes and called shop staff 'Hitlers' during dispute

The health board apologised for A’s experience – but it was alleged that there was little explanation as to what happened or any potential treatment options that may have been available.

An SPSO spokesperson said: “We found that A's medical history meant that they were at an increased risk of complications such as bleeding and incontinence following surgery.

“We were critical of the board for a lack of evidence of A being made aware of these risks when consenting to the surgery.

“We also found that, whilst the board were aware that there would be no specialist urological support available within the hospital following A's surgery, this was not communicated to A.

“Support was available from a neighbouring health board, however, we found that the board's staff did not seek their input as early as they could have when A began to show signs of postoperative complications.

READ MORE: Borders pensioner who drove while almost 5 times alcohol limit banned from road

“We also found that there was a lack of accurate record-keeping with regard to A's care at Borders General Hospital and upheld this aspect of the complaint.”

However, the public services watchdog did not uphold the grievance over the original apology.

On the findings, an NHS Borders spokesperson said: “The SPSO findings highlighted that some aspects of care that A received were unacceptable. We have accepted the recommendations identified in full and changes have been made so that similar experiences are avoided in the future.

“We are very sorry for the upset caused and have offered a full apology.”