HEALTH AND CARE: Are you ready for the bank holiday?

Latest figures show that one in four calls to the local GP out of hours service on a Saturday is due to people running out of routine medication.

With the August bank holiday approaching, we are keen for people to think about what medicines you need and make sure you have enough at home.

And if you don’t, or you are running low, think ahead and contact your GP practice to order more.

The out of hours doctors are available for people who need urgent medical help and treatment; the service is not designed for more routine problems like repeat prescriptions.

At the moment, the 111 phone lines are busy at the weekend with people who need repeat prescriptions, with hundreds of people calling for medicines that they have run out of.

We want to do all we can to make sure that the right team is available when you really need NHS help, and we can make sure you get the support you need.

Coastal West Sussex as an area has one of the highest rates of calls to 111 from people because they have run out of routine medication, and we want to change that.

As we approach a bank holiday weekend, we want to make sure that NHS services are available for people who need help, and you don’t have to wait any longer than necessary if you are trying to get an appointment with an out of hours doctor, or find out where you can get urgent medical attention.

With this in mind, if you do need regular medicines please plan ahead and think about your repeat prescriptions before the Bank Holiday weekend.

If you don’t have enough, please speak to your GP practice or local pharmacist ahead of the Bank Holiday and make sure you can get what you need.

It is also a really good opportunity to take time and review what is on your repeat prescription list.

Do you need all of the drugs you are being prescribed? Are you regularly taking them all? If not then please speak to your local pharmacist or GP.

Once you have taken drugs out of the pharmacy they can’t be reused, and have to be thrown away, so if you aren’t taking some medicines any more let us know and we can take it off your list.

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