Out of hours calls

At night and at weekends when the surgery is closed, your calls will be automatically diverted to the out of hours service. 

Advice may be given or you may be asked to attend the out of hours centre which is at Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford.

If necessary a doctor or emergency care practitioner may visit you at home.

Prime Care

Prime Care is an "out of hours" service for urgent problems that cannot wait until the surgery is open. It is commissioned by our Primary Care Trust.

You may be given advice by a nurse or a doctor, or asked to attend the out of hours centre. If you cannot get to the centre you may be visited by a doctor or a specially trained paramedic called an "emergency care practitioner" (ECP). The ECP can discuss your case with a doctor if he or she needs advice. The ECP can also send you to the appropriate hospital department if needed or even stitch up your wounds.

The out of hours centre is at Broomfield hospital, though is some cases you may be advised to attend another centre.

It is not a "drop in" centre, it is important that you phone 0844 477 3088 first.

Why is Prime Care looking after our patients "out of hours"?

Since the new contract for family doctors, we were all given the option to take a drop in pay and "opt out" of being responsible for providing "out of hours" care.

We had been working in a GP cooperative (Cheldoc) which provided out of hours care. However when our PCT became responsible for out of hours care, they did not want to use Cheldoc.

Therefore if we didn't opt out be would have been back to covering Stock Surgery between the two of us or using a deputising service similar to Prime Care.

If we covered Stock Surgery ourselves, we would have been working every other night and every other weekend including the nights. You would have had two very tired doctors. We understandably preferred to take the drop in pay.