Care options for October Bank Holiday Weekend

Ahead of the October bank holiday weekend, HSE Mid West is encouraging the public to familiarise themselves with all local community and hospital options available to meet their healthcare needs.

GP Out-of-Hours Services and Pharmacies

GP out-of-hours services and local pharmacies may be more helpful to consider instead of presenting at the Emergency Department at University Hospital Limerick (UHL). GPs can also refer appropriate patients to medical assessment units, which are open seven days a week at Ennis, Nenagh and St John’s hospitals.

Out of Hours GP Services: Shannondoc provides urgent out-of-hours medical services when your GP surgery is closed. Shannondoc operates 6pm-8am Monday to Friday and for the duration of the Bank Holiday weekend, and can be contacted on 0818 123 500. Visit the Shannondoc website here for more.

Local pharmacies: Pharmacists are qualified healthcare professionals who can give you advice on minor illnesses and tell you if you need to see a GP. Find contact details for local pharmacies on the HSE website here.

Hospital Injury Units and Medical Assessment Units

Hospitals have enhanced and expanded local access to urgent care facilities and medical assessment units as an alternate pathway to ED. The injury units and medical assessment units in Ennis, Nenagh and St John’s Hospitals are managing approximately 1,300 patients per week.

Injury Units operate 8am-8pm for walk-in treatment of minor injuries such as breaks, sprains and burns. Patients are typically seen and treated in under two hours. You do not need an appointment to attend an Injury Unit, and if you’re referred by a GP you will not have to pay the €75 fee. If you are anxious or unsure where to go, ring your Injury Unit and our expert team can advise you.

· St John’s Injury Unit (8am-8pm), Limerick City, 061 462132

· Ennis Injury Unit (8am-8pm), 065 686 3121

· Nenagh Injury Unit (8am-8pm), 067 42311

Medical Assessment Units are open 16 hours a day, 8am to 12 midnight, seven days a week. They provide a direct referral pathway for GPs to secure prompt assessment and treatment of medical patients who otherwise might have presented to Limerick ED.

The Emergency Department at UHL is open 24/7 for the most acute and life-threatening conditions. With the ED experiencing high attendances in the run-up to the holiday weekend, we are working to maximise patient flow in our acute hospitals and across the healthcare system in the region.