Macclesfield MP David Rutley is backing a call for people to ‘Choose Well’ when seeking help from local NHS services.
The appeal comes after David’s recent seasonal visit to Macclesfield Hospital, during which he saw first-hand how local health services are managing demand over winter.
It has been revealed that more than 3,300 people who visited A&E at the hospital between November 2014 and February 2015 needed no treatment apart from information and advice.
Many of those people had common ailments like coughs and colds which they could have treated themselves or asked their pharmacist about. And it would have cost the NHS around £50,000 less if those people had stayed away from A&E. That money would pay the salaries of two newly-qualified nurses.
David said: “As in recent years, it is clear that the hard-working staff I met at the hospital will be particularly busy over the winter months.
“That is why it is vital that the people coming in to A&E should be those who really need its services. We are asking people to save A&E visits for genuine emergencies and consider options such as local pharmacies, GP surgeries and NHS 111 in other situations.”
David met staff and patients in the Emergency Department, the Acute Assessment Unit and the Medical Assessment Unit – three areas vital to taking care of patients’ needs. Trust staff also explained to David how the trust’s many community-based teams play a vital role around safe and timely patient discharge and admission avoidance, along with their counterparts in social care.
NHS Eastern Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), which plans and buys healthcare for 204,000 people, is running a multi-media campaign to give residents the information they need to choose the right service at the right time so they get better quickly and help ease the strain on hard-pressed services.
The CCG is advertising throughout the winter in locations including Macclesfield, Knutsford and Wilmslow railway stations, Morrisons in Congleton, Waitrose in Poynton, and on buses and phone booths across the area. The CCG is also spreading its Choose Well messages on radio stations, in local newspapers and on its website at www.easterncheshireccg.nhs.uk.
Dr Julia Huddart, CCG clinical lead for urgent care and GP with Kenmore Medical Centre, Wilmslow said: “The aim of our campaign is to encourage sensible use of the local urgent care system and to remind people they should only call 999 or visit A&E in life-threatening emergencies such as loss of consciousness, severe chest pain, breathing difficulties or heavy bleeding.
“If you need urgent NHS help or advice but it’s not an emergency, there are alternatives locally.”
For lots of great advice on choosing the right service at the right time, visit www.easterncheshireccg.nhs.uk and search for Choose Well and Think Pharmacy. And don’t forget that your pharmacist is a highly-qualified professional who can recommend treatment for a wide range of ailments.