Out of Hours

Out of Hours Arrangements

Out of hours is currently defined as 6.30 pm to 8am weekdays and all weekend plus Bank Holidays.
From December 1st 2004, the out-of hours cover was taken over by the Primary Care Trust, which currently commissions BadgerHarmoni to provide the care. It is based at the St Cross Hospital Casualty department in a Primary Health Care Centre. Most patients should be able to attend the centre outside normal surgery hours, but home visits continue to be made when medically necessary. To be seen, it is best to 'phone in first: call the surgery number and the call will automatically be forwarded.

You might find it helpful to check out the NHS Direct Website in case there is any doubt that an out of hours consultation is necessary.

Guidelines

Visit Recommended

Home visiting makes clinical sense and is the best way of giving a medical opinion, for example in cases involving the terminally ill or the truly bed-bound for who travel to premises by car would cause a deterioration in their medical condition or unacceptable discomfort.

Visit may be useful

After initial assessment over the telephone, a seriously ill patient may be helped by a GP's attendance to prepare them for travel to hospital, provided that the GP's other committments do not prevent him/her from arriving before the ambulance. Examples include heart attacks, severe shortness of breath and severe haemorrhage.

Visit NOT usual

In most of these cases, a visit would not be usual:

Common symptoms of childhood such as fevers, colds, coughs, earache, headache, diarrhoea or vomiting and most cases of abdominal pain. These patients are almost always well enough to travel by car and it is not necessarily harmful to take a child with fever outside. Car transport is available from friends, relatives or taxi firms. It is not a doctor's job to arrange such transport.

Adults with common problems, such as cough, sore throat, influenza, back pain and abdominal pain, are also readily transportable by car to the doctor's premises.

Common problems in the elderly, such as poor mobility, joint pain and general malaise, would also best be treated by consultation at a doctor's premises. The exception to this would be the truly bed-bound patient.