What to do when your G.P Surgery is closed:

From 1st September 2004, your local Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) are responsible for providing urgent health care services outside GP surgery opening times. The change to 'Out of Hours' forms part of the new arrangements for Gps that were introduced nationally on 1st April 2004.

The new service will offer care for urgent health care problems when GP surgeries are closed: this is between 6:30pm and 8:30am Monday to Friday and 24 hours over weekends and bank holidays.

The Out of Hours Service can be contacted on 0845 345 8995. This number will also be available on your regular GP surgery's answer phone.

As per current practice, your personal details will be taken and passed onto a GP, who will return your call and assess your medical requirements. This may involve advice about self-care, a visit to a Primary Care Centre, or a home visit by a GP or specialist Paramedic. Please remember that the on call doctors can see far more patients at a central location than by visiting them at home.

Patients will be given an appointment and advised when and where to attend. There are three Primary Care Centres located at:

- Abingdon Community Hospital

- Townlands Hospital in Henley-on-Thames

- Witney Community Hospital

Information about your contact with the Out of Hours service will be forwarded to your GP practice by the next working day.

The new model of care is unchanged from the existing service in that Out of Hours calls should be restricted to genuine urgent health care problems only.

We would like to remind you that Out of Hours cover does NOT deal with the following:

- Prescriptions for medicines that can be bought at the chemist.

- Repeat prescriptions.

- Second opinions on problems being dealt with by your doctor.

- Problems that can wait until your surgery is open.


Emergencies:

Please remember - if the situation is an emergency and you need immediate care:

- Dial 999 and ask for an ambulance.

- Go straight to your nearest emergency department at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading or the Great Western in Swindon.