Our Emergency Department at Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital is currently seeing an increasing number of patients with very serious conditions.
So far, January has been the busiest January on record for the number of patients attending our urgent and emergency care pathways and although the team is working tirelessly to provide care to everyone this has resulted in longer waits and crowded waiting rooms. Therefore, we are sorry if you are impacted and appreciate your understanding and patience but we want to remind East Lancashire residents that if your health condition isn’t life or limb threatening, there are other services that might be best suited to your health needs – and enable you to be seen more quickly.
These include:
- Minor Injuries Unit at the Acorn Centre in Accrington – treats suspected fractures, cuts, bruises, minor eye problems, burns, scalds, and sprains.
- Urgent Treatment Centres (UTC) at Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital and Burnley General Teaching Hospital – treats suspected broken bones or breathing difficulties which need immediate care but are not life-threatening. Appointments are available and you may be asked to return for an appointment rather than being assessed when you initially attend and to avoid overcrowding we ask that only one person accompany a patient receiving treatment – this can be increased if the patient is in a critical condition.
- Pharmacy – your local pharmacy can give you advice on most minor illnesses and now provide some prescription medicine without seeing a GP.
- GPs – Contact your local surgery or to contact a GP out of hours, call 111.
- NHS 111 – available 24/7 for advice and guidance.
Anyone with life or limb threatening conditions that need emergency attention should call 999.