We’re asking the residents of Lewisham, Greenwich and Bexley to help us help you to stay well. If you or a loved one are feeling unwell, make sure you use the right service – see below for more information.
Speak to a pharmacist
Pharmacists are medically trained and can give you expert advice on medicines and how they work as well as help you decide whether you need to see a doctor. You don’t need an appointment or to even make a purchase, and you can talk to them in a private consultation area in confidence.
Common complaints that can be treated at home with advice from the pharmacist include:
- Skin conditions, such as mild acne and mild eczema
- Coughs and colds including nasal congestion and sore throat
- Minor cuts and bruises
- Constipation and haemorrhoids (piles)
- Hay fever and allergies
- Aches, pains, such as headaches, earaches and backaches
- Indigestion, diarrhoea and threadworms
- Period pain and thrush
- Warts and verrucas, mouth ulcer and cold sores
- Athlete's foot
- Nappy rash and teething
Pharmacists can suggest treatments that do not need a prescription for a range of conditions.
Most pharmacies can also offer prescription medicine for some conditions, without you needing to see a GP or make an appointment. This is called Pharmacy First.
Conditions they can offer prescription medicine for are:
- impetigo (aged 1 year and over)
- infected insect bites (aged 1 year and over)
- earache (aged 1 to 17 years)
- sore throat (aged 5 years and over)
- sinusitis (aged 12 years and over)
- urinary tract infections (UTIs) (women aged 16 to 64 years)
- shingles (aged 18 years and over)
If you are not within these age ranges, a pharmacist can still offer advice and support decisions about self care treatment with over the counter medicines, but you may need to see a GP for treatment.
If you go to a pharmacy with one of these conditions, the pharmacist will offer you advice, treatment or refer you to a GP or other health professional if needed. They will also update your GP health record, but your information will not be shared with anyone else.
Most pharmacies can provide prescription medicine for these conditions but contact them before visiting to check.
Call NHS 111
If you think you need to see a doctor in the evening, over the weekend or on a Bank Holiday, for something which you feel cannot wait, call 111.
Trained call handlers will assess your symptoms and put you directly in touch with the people who can help, for example, an out-of-hours doctor, a district nurse or an emergency dentist — or it may be something as simple as a 24 hour pharmacy. But NHS 111 can also send an ambulance, without delay, if required.
You should use the NHS 111 service if:
- you need medical help fast, but it’s not a 999 emergency
- you think you need to go to A&E or another NHS urgent care service
- you don’t know who to call for medical help or you don’t have a GP to call
- you require health information or reassurance about what to do next
For less urgent health needs, you should still contact your GP in the usual way.
Calls to 111 are free from landlines and mobile phones and the service is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Your GP
GPs provide a range of services including medical advice, examinations, prescriptions and care for long term conditions, chronic pain and persistent symptoms.
Out of hours, a call to 111 will direct you to out of hours doctors and care.
999 in an emergency
Please think before you dial 999. The ambulance service is for emergencies and life-threatening situations only. If ambulance crews are called out to those suffering minor illnesses, they cannot get to those who really need their help.
The Emergency Department (A&E) is for serious, life-threatening injuries and illnesses that need urgent medical attention.
These include:
- loss of consciousness
- serious blood loss
- choking, severe chest pain or breathing difficulty
- serious burns
- strokes and persistent seizures (fits).
People with these types of serious conditions will be treated before those with minor complaints, which would be more appropriately helped by calling 111.
Remember, unless it is an emergency, anyone with symptoms of vomiting or diarrhea should not visit NHS buildings until 48 hours after the symptoms have cleared. Good hand hygiene at all times helps reduce the risk of spreading infection.
You can also find health advice online at www.nhs.uk – an early enquiry can help prevent a crisis later. Choosing the right service helps to reduce the pressure on emergency services and ensure that they are available for those who really need them.