ISLANDERS are being urged to only use the Emergency Department for “genuine emergencies”, after a fifth of visitors in the past six months did not require treatment or could have used a different service.
In preparation for the winter period, the Health Department has advised patients that only those with a “serious or life-threatening illness or injury” should attend A&E.
The public is asked to consider services such as the pharmacy, GP or out-of-hours GP service for other issues.
In the past six months, 20% of A&E visitors could have accessed healthcare somewhere else and 3% required no treatment at all, the government said.
Dr Masha Finn, clinical lead and a consultant in emergency medicine, said: “We just want to make sure the public are accessing the right services.
“Last year we had lots of people attending the Emergency Department for non-essential reasons.
“We treated the most minor issues ranging from a cold to patients stopping by the Emergency Department to get a check-up before they went on holiday.”
A sign reminding people they should visit only in a genuine emergency has also been put up outside the Hospital.
In August, Islanders not experiencing a genuine emergency were told to keep away, as the hospital dealt with a spike in bed blocking.
The following month, the Ambulance Service reported “significant strain” on their emergency response system due to a large volume of calls, which they said could potentially lead to “delays in attending to life-threatening situations”.
