Our Work
Four programmes. One purpose: ensuring every person in Grampian can access the care they deserve.
Each of our programmes is designed to address a specific gap between the care people in Aberdeen and Grampian need and the care they are actually receiving. All services are free, confidential, and open to anyone — no referral required for most.
One-to-one support from a trained advocate at any point in a person's health journey — from GP referrals through to hospital treatment and discharge planning.
Our advocates work with clients to clarify diagnoses, prepare for consultations, and communicate clearly with clinical teams. Where a client is unable to instruct us directly — due to cognitive impairment or mental health crisis — we provide non-instructed advocacy, representing their observable interests and wellbeing. We are independent of NHS Grampian and all other statutory bodies, which means our loyalty is always solely to the person we are supporting.
Free community workshops that demystify the NHS, explain rights and entitlements, and help participants become more confident, informed health citizens.
Delivered in community centres, libraries, mosques, and other trusted local venues across Aberdeen, our workshops cover topics including how to get the most from a GP appointment, understanding medication and consent, navigating mental health services, and knowing when and how to make a complaint. Sessions are adapted for different literacy levels and delivered in community languages including Arabic, Polish, and Portuguese where demand requires. Attendance is free and no referral is needed.
Specialist support for Aberdeen's new communities — including asylum seekers, refugees, and migrant workers — in accessing and understanding NHS services for the first time.
Aberdeen is home to a significant and diverse population of people born outside Scotland, many of whom face compounded barriers: unfamiliarity with NHS structures, language gaps, cultural differences in healthcare expectations, and, for some, trauma that makes clinical environments deeply frightening. Our advocates in this programme combine health advocacy skills with cultural knowledge and interpreter liaison. We work closely with Aberdeen Harbour Mission, Grampian Regional Equality Council, and local GP practices to ensure no one is left unregistered or unsupported.
Dedicated advocacy support for people experiencing mental illness, navigating psychiatric services, or subject to the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003.
Mental health advocacy requires a particular sensitivity and a thorough grounding in Scottish mental health law. Our advocates support clients attending Mental Health Tribunals, care programme approach meetings, and reviews under compulsory treatment orders. We help individuals understand the rights available to them under Scottish legislation and ensure those rights are respected in practice. This programme also includes support for carers and family members who are themselves struggling to navigate a complex and often frightening system.
The daily work of Vibrant Health Advocates Aberdeen Branch is relentlessly practical. A typical week might see an advocate accompany a 68-year-old man with early-stage dementia to a memory clinic appointment in Foresterhill, spending an hour beforehand helping him articulate the changes he has noticed in himself and preparing the family member attending alongside him. That same week, another advocate might run a drop-in session at the Torry Community Hub, fielding questions about prescription charges, repeat prescription processes, and how to request a same-day appointment. A third colleague might be preparing a written submission to NHS Grampian on behalf of a client who believes she was discharged prematurely following surgery, walking the client through the formal complaints process step by step.
Beneath those individual interactions lies a body of systemic work: attending Patient Participation Groups, feeding case trends back to NHS Grampian's Patient Experience team, contributing to Aberdeen City Health and Social Care Partnership's planning consultations, and training community volunteers to deliver basic health navigation support in their own networks.
We keep meticulous, anonymised records of the issues our clients bring to us, because those patterns are a form of intelligence — they tell us where the system is failing, and where we need to direct our energy next. Concrete, consistent, and always person-centred: that is how we work.
Contact us for support
If you need support, want to make a referral, or would like to know more about our programmes, we are here to help.
Get in touch Get involved