A new model for Urgent Care for NW London?
If you want urgent (unplanned) medical help where do you turn to – your GP, A&E, a Walk In Centre , an Urgent Care Centre, Minor Injuries Unit, or Out of Hours GP service, ring 999 or 111 ? In hours and Out of Hours the choices are rather different. This multiplicity of choices and the different options in each area makes for a very confusing picture and it is no wonder people often go to less appropriate places. There is a lot of duplication and very poor communication so that you have to repeat your story and there no access to your complete medical record held at your GP practice and the information about your urgent care contact may not filter back to the GP or other people involved in your ongoing care. You may be seen by a doctor or a nurse or another type of professional. And the cost is high; attendance at A&E is rising inexorably and you’ll have seen the headlines showing that the system is breaking and unsustainable in its present form. We need a syst