CLEVEDON hospital’s minor injuries unit (MIU) will be open for one hour less each day from this month.
NHS North Somerset has decided to change the opening hours of the Old Street facility from 7am-9pm to 8am-9pm between now and March of next year.
Before this month’s change, most nursing services were available throughout the day but patients needing an x-ray, plastering or suturing may have been sent to hospitals in Bristol and Weston if the necessary staff were not working at the time of their visit.
Recently, the skill level of staff at the MIU has been improved and NHS North Somerset hopes, by reducing the opening times, patients will receive a more consistent level of care no matter what time they visit.
Initial proposals were put forward to also close the unit at 8pm but a consultation revealed many patients were concerned about the earlier closing time.
In a report to North Somerset Council’s health overview and scrutiny panel, which met on September 20, Debbie Clark of NHS North Somerset says work is still being carried out to assess whether it would be suitable to eventually reduce the hours to 9am-9pm.
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