Urgent care and minor injuries

NHS 111 can help if you’re not sure where to go

Call NHS 111 or visit 111 online. They can direct you to the nearest urgent care service or book an appointment with an out of hours doctor. They can also book an appointment at A&E for you if it is an emergency. This may reduce your wait.

If you need urgent medical attention, but it’s not life-threatening you can go to your nearest minor injuries unit or urgent treatment centre to get care. They are open at least 12 hours a day (some are open 24 hours a day), every day. They deal with conditions such as:

sprains and strains
suspected broken limbs
minor head injuries
cuts and grazes
bites and stings
minor scalds and burns
ear and throat infections
skin infections and rashes
eye problems
coughs and colds
high temperature in child and adults
stomach pain
being sick (vomiting) and diarrhoea
emergency contraception

Minor injuries and urgent treatment centres near you

Urgent care for infants and children

Minor injuries units and urgent treatment centres can deal with many of the everyday children’s ailments and accidents. It can be difficult to know when to take your child to the accident and emergency department (A&E).

Take your child to A&E if they have:

a fever and are still sluggish (floppy), despite having paracetamol or ibuprofen
severe tummy (abdominal) pain
a leg or arm injury and cannot use the limb
swallowed a poison or tablets.

Call an ambulance if your child:

stops breathing
is struggling for breath (for example, you may notice them breathing fast, panting, becoming very wheezy, or see the muscles just under their ribcage sucking in when they breathe in)
is unconscious or seems unaware of what’s going on
has a cut that will not stop bleeding or is gaping open
will not wake up
has a fit for the first time, even if they seem to recover.

Children’s A&E