Winchcombe Minor Injuries Unit – Temporary Closure

26th July 2007

Gloucestershire PCT and local GPs have agreed to the temporary closure of the Minor Injuries Unit at Winchcombe Hospital on staff and patient safety grounds.

The current floods are placing additional strain on the hospital and the nursing staff who provide cover for the Minor Injuries Unit need to focus on caring for inpatients on the ward.

As a result of the current shortages, water is currently being transferred by hand into the hospital by staff for sanitation purposes.

Winchcombe Minor Injuries Unit has the lowest level of activity of all the minor injury units in Gloucestershire. The MIU treats between 1 and 2 patients a day, a level of activity significantly lower than comparable minor injuries units elsewhere in the county.

Nearly 50% of the attendances are for application of dressings and non urgent treatments (outside the remit of a Minor Injuries Unit) such as bladder scans and blood pressure monitoring.

Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust’s Director of Care Services, John Ford said:

“We want to ensure that the residents of Winchcombe and the surrounding area continue to have timely access to the range of health services that they need.”

“There is agreement from local clinicians that based on staff and patient safety considerations and the additional pressures brought on by the floods, a temporary closure of the Minor Injuries Unit is the right course of action to take.”

“We have made no permanent decision and will review the position when the current floods incident is over.”

Dr Keith Curtis, Senior Partner at Winchcombe Medical Practice said:

"Under the current circumstances we recognise that there are very real safety concerns. It is important that the nursing staff are in a position to concentrate on the health and well-being of the current hospital inpatients.”