Need Urgent Care?

How to get urgent care for yourself or someone else:

If it is a serious or life-threatening illness or injury ring 999 or go to the Emergency Department, follow this link for more information.

For advice 24/7 when it is urgent but not an emergency go here for the NHS Direct Wales online symptom checker or ring 111. For more information on what the 111 telephone service is and how it can help please see below.

To access the GP out-of-hours service, when your doctors' surgery is closed, ring 111.  The GP Out of Hours Service operates when your own surgery is closed, overnight and 24 hours on weekends and bank holidays. To access the service, ring 111.

For minor injuries, please visit our Minor Injury Unit at Neath Port Talbot Hospital. Visit this page for more information about the MIU and the types of injuries it treats. Note: the MIU treats injuries to the body only and cannot treat illness. Please don't go to the MIU if you have an illness, chest pain, stroke etc. Due to staffing pressures the MIU opening hours have temporarily changed to 8am-9pm, seven days a week. *See update at the bottom of this page for more information.

More details on urgent care services

NHS Direct Online symptom checker

This online support is available 24/7. Go here for the NHS Wales 111 online symptom-checker for advice.

111 telephone service

111 is the free-to-call number for people to access the right care from the correct professional 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It brings together NHS Direct Wales and GP out-of-hours services - but lines can be busy, so if possible please visit the online symptom-checker webpage above as a first option before calling.

How it works:

• Your call will be answered by an experienced and highly-trained call handler who will ask a series of questions which will help them to identify the urgency of the call. 
• Those calls will go to a nurse advisor for telephone triage. They will provide advice on the care that is needed whether that be self care or referral on to another service such as an out-of-hours GP appointment, Minor Injury Unit or Emergency Department.
• A special team of GPs, nurses and pharmacists are also available during evenings and weekends to deal with certain calls including those about minor illnesses or medicine management.
• Please switch off WiFi calling if you are using a mobile phone, as this app prevents the service  recognising your location, so you may have difficulties getting through to the Welsh 111 service. Please use your normal mobile phone provider service instead to ring 111.

111 urgent mental health support

24/7 mental health support is now available over the phone in Swansea Bay. People living in Swansea and Neath Port Talbot who need urgent support with mental health issues can now call a team of mental health professionals for free, day or night.

Calling 111 and choosing option 2 puts callers in direct contact with a team of 20 mental health professionals based at Neath Port Talbot Hospital. The service is available for anyone in Swansea and Neath Port Talbot with a mental health concern, including relatives who need advice.

Callers will be supported by fully trained clinicians working as part of a multi-disciplinary team including mental health nurses, psychological wellbeing practitioners and occupational therapists.

Pharmacies/chemists

Visiting your local pharmacy is a great way to access free prompt advice and treatments for common conditions, especially after GP surgeries have closed for the day and on the weekends. You can can get free over-the-counter treatments and/or advice without being charged for a wide range of ailments listed  below.

Some of the work traditionally done by GPs is also now done by pharmacists instead. This includes giving prescription-only medications for a number of minor ailments when necessary without the need to see a doctor. And, like other medications in Wales, these are also free.

You have to register with the pharmacy to use the Common Ailments Scheme, but the process only takes a few minutes. Consultations are carried out in a private room and if the pharmacist decides you still need to see a doctor they will refer you.

Common ailments covered by the scheme

• Acne, Athletes' foot, back pain, chickenpox, cold sores, colic, constipation, dermatitis, diarrhoea, dry eyes,  eye infections, hay fever, head lice, indigestion, ingrowing toenail, intertrigo, mouth ulcers, nappy rash, oral thrush, piles; ring worm, scabies, sore throat, teething, threadworm, vaginal thrush, verruca.

For more information on the Common Ailments Scheme, please follow this link.

Sunday and bank holiday pharmacy rotas

Dentists

If you have a regular dentist and are experiencing dental pain, you should contact your dental practice for advice on how to manage your problems and where appropriate you should be provided with an urgent appointment.

If you do not have a regular dentist or have an urgent dental problem outside normal working hours, please call 111 for advice and help in finding an urgent dental appointment if required.

It is important that people continue to contact their regular dentist if they have problems such as a swelling, pain that is not relieved with simple pain relief within 24-48 hours or if they have ulcers which have not healed within seven days.

No-one should be suffering from toothache, a dental infection or problems from their mouth - your regular dentist is able to provide care and advice quickly and emergency dentists are available. 

If you receive urgent dental treatment, the charge will be £30 unless you are exempt from paying NHS charges. If you do not have to pay for treatment, you will be asked to provide evidence of this when you attend the practice.

Follow this link to the Welsh Government website if you are unsure if you are exempt or need any further advice around patient charges for dental services.

Follow this link to our Urgent Dental Service page to find more information about accessing treatment.

Opticians

Your local optician can provide free emergency appointments. Go here to find out more about the types of treatment and care you can get from your optician.

Physiotherapy

Go to this page for contact details and information on how to access outpatient physiotherapy.

Sexual health

Helpline 0300 5550279

The sexual health services helpline is open Monday - Thursday: 8am - 3pm and Friday: 8am – 1pm.

Please note, the line will be closed 12.30pm - 1.00pm each day for lunch, and all day on bank holidays.

Go to this page for more information on our sexual health services, guides to STIs and contraception and our Pregnancy Advisory Service.

*Minor Injury update:

Due to ongoing staffing pressures we have made the difficult decision to temporarily reduce the opening hours of the Minor Injury Unit at Neath Port Talbot Hospital. It is now available from 8am until 9pm, seven days a week, for a period of nine months, rather than the previous times of 7.30am-11pm. 

Anyone needing urgent attention that cannot wait until the following day should use 111 or, if it is serious enough, the Emergency Department at Morriston Hospital.

The Minor Injury Unit is an important part of Swansea Bay’s urgent and emergency care services. We have no intention of making this a permanent change and we are recruiting additional staff. We are working closely with Llais, the independent organisation which represents the views of health and social care service users and patients across Wales.

Previously, we have had to close the MIU early at short notice on several occasions. This caused difficulties for patients who turned up expecting to be seen only to have to go to Morriston Hospital instead. On average, five patients a day attended the MIU between 9pm and 11pm. Closing temporarily at 9pm allows us to provide a sustainable service, with the least impact on patients.

We hope you will understand the reasons for the change. Be assured we are doing all we can to resolve the situation as quickly as possible.

Please note the MIU is for minor injuries only and cannot treat serious illnesses or serious injuries. It cannot deal with patients with an illness, suspected heart attack, chest pains or stroke. Please follow this link for further information on what can and cannot be treated at the Minor Injury Unit.