Urgent care unit to close at nights

A HOSPITAL has temporarily suspended overnight opening at its urgent care centre because of winter pressures.

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has announced that Wansbeck urgent care centre will be closed between 10pm and 8am.

The measure – part of winter resilience planning across emergency care services – will release an extra 56 hours of nursing time for the emergency department at the Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital in Cramlington a week.

Some of the nursing team already rotate to Cramlington as part of training and education so will make a positive impact immediately, the trust says.

Health bosses have further said that, since emergency care was transformed in 2015, overnight activity at Wansbeck urgent care centre has been minimal.

On an average night there are fewer than four attendances between 10pm and 8am. In light of these extremely low numbers, the trust is working with its urgent care nursing staff to ensure their skills can be put to best use to meet demand across the trust.

“It’s not a decision we take lightly,” said Dr Jeremy Rushmer, executive medical director at the trust, “but the sheer number of people attending the emergency department (Cramlington) – including many elderly and/or frail patients who are complex to assess and are in need of significant support to resolve their problems – means we have to activate contingency plans in order to cope.

Northern Doctors Urgent Care – contactable via 111 – will continue to use the centre as a bases should an urgent GP appointment be needed.