YOU may feel unwell or have a health issue – but do you need to be ‘a patient’?

The NHS in Hillingdon is asking everyone to think twice if they become ill this winter, consider the options available and help take the pressure of hard pressed health services in the borough.

“GP practices can often give same day treatment, particularly for children,” said Dr Mitch Garsin of Hillingdon Clinical Commissioning Group.

“Pharmacies are open every day across the borough and the NHS 111 phone line is open 24/7 as a first port of call for advice.

“For everyday health problems these are the right choices, and help the emergency teams in the hospital give their full attention to seriously ill people.”

Dr Garsin, a local GP and the lead for urgent care at Hillingdon CCG, said with the coming of winter, the common health problems that come with it were already putting a strain on some of its core services.

“The A&E and urgent care centres at Hillingdon Hospital are seeing big increases in the numbers arriving through the door on foot,” he said.

“It’s those people coming in on foot for non-emergency, non-urgent problems who we’re asking to think twice about other NHS services.”

In 2013, Hillingdon Urgent Care Centre opened at the hospital in Pield Heath Road. In recent months, use has been increasing significantly, spiking at more than 350 patients on Sunday, December 14. It set up to help an average of 180 patients a day.

Over in the hospital’s A&E department, numbers are also rising.

Dr Garsin said: “We’re putting more capacity into the urgent care centre but we do also need local people to use the alternatives that are there.”

Trevor Begg, patient representative at Hillingdon CCG, said: “As patients we have a vested interest in helping our NHS.

“Each time we turn up at A&E or an urgent care centre with a minor problem we put a strain of the doctors and nurses working round the clock to treat critically ill patients.

“One day, that critically ill person could be any one of us or a loved one.

“If that happened we would want the NHS emergency teams totally focussed on our care, not also having to deal with coughs, colds and hangovers.”

There is more information about local service, including pharmacies and other services open through the Christmas holidays, at www.hillingdonccg.nhs.uk/rightcare