20 May 2012
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3 December 2010
Advice for staying well as weather turns icy
Care UK is giving people across the UK ten pieces of cold weather health advice as heavy snow descends over the country.
Dr Mark Hunt, MD, Healthcare at Care UK, is offering advice on how to stave off illness as well as informing people of the quickest way to get treatment if they do get ill now or over the festive season.
Dr Hunt said: “The plummeting temperatures usually mean a lot more people will be visiting their doctors whether they’re suffering from cold and flu viruses or incurred an injury from the icy conditions.
“With the variety of different health services available, we want to ensure people know where they should go and what services are available to them now and over the festive season.
“Often people don’t realise they can benefit from much shorter waiting times by using the right NHS service. For example many minor ailments and injuries can be dealt with at a NHS walk-in centre or minor injuries unit, where patients can just turn up without an appointment, meaning they can be seen much more quickly than in traditional A&E departments.”
Dr Hunt added: “We are reminding patients that our services will be running over the Christmas holidays, so they can make an appointment to visit their GP, or visit our walk-in service for immediate care if the problem can’t wait.”
Cold weather health advice from Care UK
- Make sure your medicine cabinet is well stocked
- Visit your local pharmacy in the first instance if you feel ill
- Get your repeat prescriptions on time so you have enough in stock if you are unable to travel during the extreme weather conditions
- Know your GP surgery opening times over the festive period
- Protect yourself from the cold with lots of light layers of clothing and drinking plenty of warm fluids.
- Look out for elderly neighbours who are more vulnerable in the winter months and contact their carer if they need assistance
- If you have an illness that will not go away and symptoms persist after seeking advice from your local pharmacy, contact your GP to make an appointment
- If you can’t get an appointment with your usual GP, are away from home or aren’t registered with a GP and need to see a doctor urgently, go to your nearest NHS Walk-in service or Minor Injuries Unit, which are usually open every day and provide a convenient service with no appointment necessary.
- If you need assistance Out-of-Hours you should call NHS Direct on 0845 4647 call your regular GP or contact your local Out-of-Hours service on (insert number)
- If the harsh weather conditions cause you to trip or fall and you suffer a sprain, cut or graze, consider visiting your local Walk-in service or Minor Injury Unit (MIU) rather than A&E; as the hospital has to prioritise life threatening conditions, you’re likely to be treated quicker at the at the Walk-in service or MIU.
- Only dial 999 in the event of an extreme accident or emergency which is life threatening
Dr Mark Hunt, MD, Healthcare at Care UK, is offering advice on how to stave off illness as well as informing people of the quickest way to get treatment if they do get ill now or over the festive season.
Dr Hunt said: “The plummeting temperatures usually mean a lot more people will be visiting their doctors whether they’re suffering from cold and flu viruses or incurred an injury from the icy conditions.
“With the variety of different health services available, we want to ensure people know where they should go and what services are available to them now and over the festive season.
“Often people don’t realise they can benefit from much shorter waiting times by using the right NHS service. For example many minor ailments and injuries can be dealt with at a NHS walk-in centre or minor injuries unit, where patients can just turn up without an appointment, meaning they can be seen much more quickly than in traditional A&E departments.”
Dr Hunt added: “We are reminding patients that our services will be running over the Christmas holidays, so they can make an appointment to visit their GP, or visit our walk-in service for immediate care if the problem can’t wait.”
Cold weather health advice from Care UK
- Make sure your medicine cabinet is well stocked
- Visit your local pharmacy in the first instance if you feel ill
- Get your repeat prescriptions on time so you have enough in stock if you are unable to travel during the extreme weather conditions
- Know your GP surgery opening times over the festive period
- Protect yourself from the cold with lots of light layers of clothing and drinking plenty of warm fluids.
- Look out for elderly neighbours who are more vulnerable in the winter months and contact their carer if they need assistance
- If you have an illness that will not go away and symptoms persist after seeking advice from your local pharmacy, contact your GP to make an appointment
- If you can’t get an appointment with your usual GP, are away from home or aren’t registered with a GP and need to see a doctor urgently, go to your nearest NHS Walk-in service or Minor Injuries Unit, which are usually open every day and provide a convenient service with no appointment necessary.
- If you need assistance Out-of-Hours you should call NHS Direct on 0845 4647 call your regular GP or contact your local Out-of-Hours service on (insert number)
- If the harsh weather conditions cause you to trip or fall and you suffer a sprain, cut or graze, consider visiting your local Walk-in service or Minor Injury Unit (MIU) rather than A&E; as the hospital has to prioritise life threatening conditions, you’re likely to be treated quicker at the at the Walk-in service or MIU.
- Only dial 999 in the event of an extreme accident or emergency which is life threatening
Notes to editors
Care UK is the largest independent provider of health and social care services in the UK. Over the course of a year, Care UK cares for approximately half a million people.Health Care
Care UK is the largest independent sector provider of both primary and secondary care services to NHS patients:
- Over 40 primary care sites (including GP and walk-in services, out of hours, diagnostics centres, clinical assessment & treatment services and prison health services).
- 7 hospitals that specialise in elective (non-urgent) surgery with exceptional clinical outcomes and no cases of hospital acquired MRSA.
Our healthcare services achieve best in class levels of patient satisfaction with over 94% of patients rating our service quality as excellent or good.
Social Care
Care UK provides care for older people and people with complex needs in both residential and community based settings. This year Care UK delivered:
- 3,500+ care home places for older people (acSue 59 care homes)
- 1,000+ specialist care places acSue 250 locations; and
- 119,000 hours per week of domiciliary care to c.16,000 service users.
CQC ratings for quality of service remain at industry-leading levels with almost 90% of services rated Excellent or Good.
Integrating Health and Social Care
Care UK specialises in bringing care from traditional higher cost settings to more accessible, lower cost community centric settings and is uniquely placed to deliver increasingly integrated health and social care solutions. Back to top | More Care UK stories
