Self help
Before you make an appointment to see the GP, consider the alternatives. The pharmacist behind the counter at your local chemist is highly trained in offering a wide range of services and may be able to give you the help you need, so you will not have to spend time waiting for an appointment.
Under Pharmacy First, pharmacists can treat and prescribe medication for seven conditions. These are the conditions, and at what age, you can see the pharmacist about:
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Anyone not within these age ranges should see their GP.
Pharmacists can also help with:
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Widnes Urgent Treatment Centre (UTC)
NUMBER CHANGE: Widnes Urgent Treatment Centre
Please note:
The telephone number for Widnes Urgent Treatment Centre has changed from 0151 495 5000 to 01925 946436.
The old 0151 number will continue to work for a short while, but callers will hear a voice message asking them to redial 01925 946436.
The caller can also be put through to the new 01925 number when prompted.
The new number for Widnes Urgent Treatment Centre is: 01925 946436.
Opening times
- Widnes UTC is open seven days a week, 365 days a year.
- This includes Christmas Day and all other public holidays.
| Monday | From 8am to 9pm |
| Tuesday | From 8am to 9pm |
| Wednesday | From 8am to 9pm |
| Thursday | From 8am to 9pm |
| Friday | From 8am to 9pm |
| Saturday | From 8am to 9pm |
| Sunday | From 8am to 9pm |
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What we treat: |
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| Slips | Burns | Indigestion |
| Trips | Scalds | Stomach upset |
| Sprains | Bites | Ear |
| Falls | Stings | Nose |
| Cuts | Coughs | Eye injuries and infections |
| Wounds | Colds | Emergency contraception |
| Rashes | Sore throats | Back pain |
| Allergies |
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What we don’t treat: |
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| Cardiac chest pain | Sudden loss of vision |
| Severe difficulty in breathing | Repeat prescriptions |
| Head injuries with loss of consciousness | Strokes |
| Head injuries under 1 years old | Chronic conditions |
- Please call 999 or visit your local A&E for all serious life-threatening illness and injuries.
Where you can find us
We can be found inside the Widnes Health Care Resource Centre.
Our contact details are as follows:
NHS Widnes Urgent Treatment Centre Health Care Resource CentreOaks PlaceCaldwell Road, WidnesWA8 7GD (Google map)
Tel: 01925 946436
If you are travelling by car, we have free parking available.
- Important: During the 30 minutes before closing, patients will be assessed but might be referred to their GP, Out-of-Hours GP or the A&E at Whiston Hospital or Warrington General Hospital.
Other local Urgent Treatment Centre’s
| St Helens Urgent Treatment Centre |
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| Runcorn Urgent Treatment Centre |
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- If you are unsure what to do or where to go, contact NHS 111
If you need urgent – but not emergency care – please contact NHS 111 first for help and advice.
Use the online service: 111.nhs.uk or call 111 from any phone (the call is free).
NHS 111 can arrange appointments for you to see the right health care professional, in the right place.
They can help you with:
- where to get help for your symptoms, if you’re not sure what to do
- how to find general health information and advice
- where to get an emergency supply of your prescribed medicine
- how to get a repeat prescription
- get emergency dental appointments
- Runcorn Urgent Treatment Centre is open 8am to 9pm, seven days a week.
Halton General Hospital
Hospital Way, Palacefields, Runcorn WA7 2DA The Nightingale Building
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What do we treat? |
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|---|---|
| Minor cuts or wounds | Emergency contraception |
| Muscle or joint injuries (eg. sprains and strains) | Prescribed medication (subject to assessment) |
| Bites or stings | Minor burns and scalds |
| Rashes and allergic reactions | Coughs and colds |
| Sore throats | Eye injuries and infections |
| Earache |
Once assessed you will receive treatment or, if deemed appropriate, be referred to another service.
We do not treat Covid- 19 postive patients, if you test positive please contact NHS 111 or your GP for advice.
| Services for children |
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NHS Runcorn Urgent Care Centre has specialist paediatric nurses who have expertise in treating Children along with special paediatric observation suites. There is also a Doctor on staff who is able to treat paediatric illnesses and injuries as appropriate. |
| X-ray |
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If you require an x-ray during your visit to the UCC, you can now receive this directly from the centre. X-ray is open from 8am – 9pm, Seven days a week. |
What conditions cannot be treated at the centre?
Conditions that Urgent Care Centres cannot treat include:
| Cardiac chest paint |
| Severe difficulty in breathing |
| Head injuries with a loss of consciousness |
| Head injuries under 1 years old |
| Sudden loss of vision |
| Repeat prescriptions |
| Chronic conditions |
| Routine pregnancy care |
| gynaecological problems |
| Strokes |
| drug overdose |
| alcohol related problems |
| mental health problems |
| health conditions that would normally be treated by your GP or hospital. |
During the 30 minutes before closing, patients will be assessed but might be referred to their GP, Out of Hours GP or the A&E at Warrington Hospital or Whiston Hospital, depending on what is closer for you.
Appointment requests
Requests for an appointment can be made via telephone or online. Sometimes you may need advice that can be dealt with via text message, telephone consultation or video consultation rather than requiring a face-to-face appointment. If the Doctor feels that you need to be seen at the surgery, an appointment will be offered. If you do not have telephone or online access, then patients are permitted to call in person at the practice.
If you are out of town and unwell, we ask that you seek medical attention from a local service. Details of local services can be obtained from the NHS Choices website and via calling NHS 111. Most acute problems require face to face assessment, and it is unsafe for us to diagnose and treat without a proper assessment.
Systmconnect is an electronic online service available for non-urgent problems subject to availability. To submit an online request please visit Systmonline.
Evening and weekend GP appointments
The practice is able to offer patients the choice of evening or weekend non-urgent appointments, making it easier for patients to see a GP at a convenient time. These appointments are available to patients across Central and West Warrington PCN as part of our Enhanced Access Service.
If you would find a later or weekend appointment more convenient, please ask the receptionist when booking a non-urgent GP appointment.
Please be aware that you will need to consent to share your medical record with the GP who is on call in the Enhanced Access Service.
The appointments are for non-urgent patients only, on a first come first serve basis. The appointments must be booked in advance and can only be accessed by your own practice; it is not a same-day appointment service.
If need to see a GP when we are closed, please call NHS 111 for our out of hours service. Please note, out of hours provision for patients is commissioned by NHS England/Warrington CCG and not provided by the practice.
Online appointment booking
Online booking is available for a range of services such as annual reviews. Patients will receive a booking link sent via SMS when they are due to be called for an appointment. The patient then follows the link allowing them to book a convenient appointment in an appropriate clinic. If you do not have access to a smartphone and have received a booking link, please telephone the practice after 11:00am instead, to book your appointment.
Home visits
If you are housebound or too ill to come to the surgery and require a visit at home, please call the surgery before 10.30am. All home visit requests will initially be assessed over the telephone by the Nurse Practitioner or a Doctor. Home visits take up much more of a doctor’s time than a consultation in the surgery, so if you are mobile, please come into the surgery to be seen where possible.
Many patents believe there is a standard home visit service available from a GP between 8am and 6.30pm, but this is not the case – the GP will decide if a home visit is warranted. Upon initial assessment over the telephone the GP may override the request for a home visit and advise the patient to attend A&E; without first seeing them. This is providing the medical condition of the patient makes that course of action appropriate.
111 will only recommend that the patient contacts their own GP service; the type of consultation will be decided by the GP. NHS care is based on patient need as assessed by a Clinician.
Doctors will always encourage people to come into the surgery because this is where the best care can be provided. Specialist equipment is there, tests can be carried out more easily and drugs issued if necessary. However, if a home visit is not approved and the patient needs to attend the surgery, they will need to arrange their own transport; this is in line with local and national guidance from health care providers and GP professional bodies.
But nationally and in line with guidance endorsed by the Royal College of GPs, a home visit occurs for the following three reasons:
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Other services
All patients who have provided us with a mobile telephone number and have an appointment booked more than 24 hours in advance will receive a free text message reminding you of the date and time of your appointment. Please let the Receptionist know or, alternatively, email us at WARCCG.flmcPostbox@nhs.net quoting your name, Date of birth and your wish to opt out of the text message reminder service.