But more recently there has been considerable investment in a bid to turn the elderly hospital in to a model of modern diagnosis and treatment.

Investment in imaging is helping faster diagnosis, reducing the need for Angus people to go to Dundee. Similarly several clinics have been opened on the site, bringing specialists to the patients.

The hospital has also seen traffic coming the other way with patients travelling up the A90 to have straight forward surgery in the more relaxed environment of Stracathro. Many patients from the Dundee area can also get their operation more quickly than if they had treatment at Ninewells.

Keen to display the refurbishment and improvements at Stracathro, local health bosses visited the site to host a reception to thank the Angus community for their continued support over the years.

Members of the Angus community, who have helped shape the services delivered at Stracathro, were invited to see the facilities now being provided there.

Many local groups and individuals, including Friends of Stracathro and representatives from Angus Council and various patients’ groups were given a progress report.

Chair of NHS Tayside Acute Services Division, Murray Petrie said, “The facilities and services now provided at Stracathro are absolutely first-class. This hospital is being hailed across Scotland as the bench-mark for how modern healthcare should be delivered.

“The facilities we see today are a direct result of staff, patients’ groups and the local community working together.”

The guests were given a tour, which included the 36-bed surgical unit, theatre suite, and endoscopy department, as well as the specialist outpatients’ ear, nose and throat, audiology and dermatology clinic areas. There was also a tour of the refurbished x-ray department.

Local communities are already enjoying the benefits of the Stroke and Rehabilitation Unit. The facility provides patients with the support to relearn how to carry out day-to-day tasks so they can return to their own homes.

NHS Tayside’s Peter Bates said he could hardly believe the transformation since he first visited as a newly appointed chairman five years ago. He told supporters they could be justly proud.

Mr Bates hinted there might be a rocky road ahead as the Stracathro site becomes the focus for a new development with the private sector.

“It is the only development like this taking place in Scotland. You might need to bear with us over the next few months which might not be a completely straight road but this is a very, very important development for Scotland as a whole.”