Dorset HealthCare is urging residents to 'think NHS 111 first' before visiting Bridport Minor Injuries Unit (MIU).

Dorset's full network of MIUs reopen on June 21 for pre-booked appointments, when they will also revert to pre-Covid opening hours.

NHS 111 will enable people to access the right treatment, in the right place, at the right time and will now be the gateway to the county's minor injuries units (MIUs), along with a range of other services.

Rather than having to look up different MIU phone numbers, you can now go to 111.nhs.com or call 111 - and if you need to go to an MIU, the 111 service will book you in. People are asked not to just turn up, but to call for a telephone assessment first - a system that has worked well during the pandemic.

This will ensure people won't have unnecessary waits and will help to avoid crowded waiting rooms.

Jane Elson, Dorset HealthCare's service director for integrated community services, said: "We're delighted not only to re-open all our MIU services, but also to provide them in a more targeted, efficient way. We had to change things over the past year and pre-booked appointments worked extremely well.

"It will save people travelling when they don't need to and ensure patients who do require face-to-face appointments won't have to sit around waiting for very long."

For more information and opening times, visit dorsethealthcare.nhs.uk

Dorset County Hospital's MIU will relocate to Weymouth Hospital this summer while refurbishment works take place to increase its capacity.

Dorchester emergency department will still be available 24/7 for serious and life-threatening injuries and conditions, but will not be able to accommodate less serious cases while the refurbishment work takes place.

Any patients who attend Dorset County Hospital for non-serious conditions will be booked into the Weymouth service. Members of the public are urged to call 111 ahead of their visit to be assessed and booked appropriately.

The service at the urgent treatment centre at Weymouth will be open from 8am until midnight every day for the duration of the Dorchester refurbishment work, which is expected to take several months. These arrangements are due to start at the end of the June.

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