Medical Matters: UTC cares for people with a range of minor injuries and illnesses

Medical Matters with Sarah James, advanced clinical practice lead at Newton Abbot Urgent Treatment Centre (UTC):

It is so important that people are able to get the right care in the right place at the right time.

This includes providing care for people who require urgent but not life-threatening treatment in our communities.

If you have a non-life-threatening illness or injury, there are lots of ways you can access advice and care without going to an Emergency Department (ED).

This will potentially save you time and it also allows ED staff to treat people with serious, life-threatening conditions.

I work at Newton Abbot UTC, based in Newton Abbot Community Hospital, which is staffed by nurse and paramedic practitioners.

Although there aren’t doctors onsite, our staff have a wide range of skills and experience, and work collaboratively to support each other to ensure we provide the best possible care for people with a range of minor injuries and illnesses.

Examples of minor injuries we see and treat include wounds – cuts, lacerations and grazes – burns and scalds, sprains and strains, broken bones, bites and stings, head injuries and eye problems.

We can also deal with a range of minor illnesses from sore throats and rashes to urine and ear infections.

We are not able to treat people who have experienced trauma from a serious accident or have heart problems, chest pain, severe breathing problems, alcohol or mental health issues or a long-term condition which is being managed by a GP.

We are also not able to issue repeat prescriptions. You can request repeat prescriptions via the NHS App or by contacting your GP surgery.

If you have a health problem related to pregnancy, you will need to be seen by a doctor or midwife. However, we are able to help pregnant women with other minor illnesses or injuries.

However, in the same way we want to keep our Emergency Department available to respond to those with life-threatening injuries, we want to keep the UTC available for urgent care needs.

Your GP can help treat conditions such as asthma, arthritis, back pain, vomiting and stomach pain.

Before contacting your GP, you can look up your symptoms online using the NHS App, the NHS website or 111 online and there may be steps you can take to help yourself before needing to contact a healthcare professional.

You can also self-care for many conditions at home with a basic first aid kit including grazes and scrapes.

Your local pharmacy can provide health advice and help with minor illnesses like colds, rashes, sunburn, hay fever and diarrhoea.

You don’t need an appointment and they can even provide you with the right medicines at the same time.

If you have an urgent but non-life-threatening health problem, please contact NHS 111. You will be directed to the right service whether that is self-care, a pharmacy, a GP, Newton Abbot UTC or the Emergency Department at Torbay Hospital.

If you are advised to come to our urgent treatment centre, NHS111 will provide you with an appointment time.

People are also welcome to use our walk-in service. We aim to see people within an hour of arrival, however please remember you will be seen in order of clinical need so there may be times when we ask you to wait for longer so that we can help those who have more urgent needs.

When you arrive at Newton Abbot UTC, we will book you in. You will be assessed by a nurse who will talk to you about your condition and any medication you are taking – it’s a good idea to bring a list of your medication with you as this is really helpful for us.

Your nurse will then examine you before discussing care and treatment options.

This may include signposting you to a service better able to support your needs such as seeing your GP or a pharmacist.

If you have a life-threatening condition, we will support you to go to the Emergency Department.

While some of our staff are able to prescribe medication not everyone is able to do so.

In some cases, they may be able to give medication under a strict set of guidelines.

Some conditions such as sore throats and earache will get better without antibiotics and we will advise you if we think this is the case as, wherever possible, we want to avoid resistance to these types of medication through over-prescribing.

If appropriate, we may organise an X-ray for you – this will depend on your injury as not all injuries need an X-ray.

Our X-ray service runs from 9am to 5pm each day and if an X-ray is required outside of these hours you will be advised on the most appropriate course of action.

Please note, we are not able to X-ray children under the age of two years old. As nurses and paramedics, we are not able to organise ultrasound or CT/MRI scans, as these have to be requested by a doctor.

Newton Abbot UTC is open from 8am to 8pm, seven days a week, including bank holidays and we welcome people from across Torbay and South Devon.

While we really hope you keep well and don’t need us, we are here to provide a high-quality service should you need us.