Minor injuries units and urgent care centres

If you have an illness that is not life threatening, contact your GP surgery first if possible.
You can still call your GP outside normal surgery hours, but you will usually be directed to an out-of-hours service. The out-of-hours period is 6.30pm to 8am on weekdays, and all day at weekends and on bank holidays.

You can also call NHS 111, which can give you advice or direct you to the best local service to treat your injury.

If your injury is not serious, you can get help from a minor injuries unit or urgent care centre, rather than going to an A&E department. This will allow A&E staff to concentrate on people with serious, life-threatening conditions and will save you a potentially long wait.

There are around 7 million attendances at type 3 A&E services (walk-in centres, urgent care centres and minor injuries units) in England. Minor injuries units and urgent care centres are usually led by nurses, and an appointment is not necessary.

The nearest to Branch End Surgery are Hexham (Hexham General Hospital) and Blaydon (Blaydon Leisure Centre)

Minor injuries units and urgent care centres can treat:

  • sprains and strains
  • broken bones
  • wound infections
  • minor burns and scalds
  • minor head injuries
  • insect and animal bites
  • minor eye injuries
  • injuries to the back, shoulder and chest

Visting an A&E department

An A&E department (also known as emergency department or casualty) deals with genuine life-threatening emergencies, such as:

Less severe injuries can be treated in urgent care centres or minor injuries units (MIUs). An A&E is not an alternative to a GP appointment. If your GP practice is closed you can call NHS 111, which will direct you to the best local service to treat your injury.