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Turriff hospital's injury unit hours are cut


By Kyle Ritchie

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Turriff hospital's minor injury unit (MIU) is set for a reduction in hours after recommendations were agreed by councillors.

The facility at Balmellie Road will now open from 8am to 6pm, seven days a week.

It will have full medical support from GPs when required.

The minor injury unit at Turriff Hospital is set for a reduction in hours.
The minor injury unit at Turriff Hospital is set for a reduction in hours.

In the rationale for its recommendation Aberdeenshire Health and Social Care Partnership said: "With the vast majority of presentations occurring during the hours of 8am-6pm there is a need to ensure that during those hours there is provision of a high quality MIU.

"Closing the MIU after 6pm will allow for better nursing support for the ward."

A review of minor injury units in Aberdeenshire has been under way since March 2018.

A decision on the Banff unit has been delayed after the community had concerns about the proposal

At a meeting of the integration joint board (IJB) councillors discussed a paper recommending future operating models for four of the nine MIUs that are part of the review.

Following a period of public consultation with affected communities, recommendations have been agreed for the units at Aboyne, Stonehaven, Turriff and Huntly.

Recommendations for the units at Insch and Inverurie were previously agreed and were implemented earlier this year.

Recommendations for the units in Banff, Fraserburgh and Peterhead will come to future meetings of the IJB for discussion and approval.

Rhona Atkinson, chairwoman of the IJB, said: “Discussion at the meeting of the IJB has been robust and I would like to thank the team behind the review for all their hard work and for putting forward recommendations that are right for each unit and community whilst being cognizant on the wider impacts.

“A huge amount of work has been done to get us to this point and I am looking forward to recommendations for the remaining three units which are part of this review, coming to us soon.”

Councillr Anne Stirling, vice-chairwoman of the IJB said: “The meeting really highlighted to me the need to continue to engage with our communities to ensure that there is a better understanding of what level of care and treatment, a minor injury unit can deliver.

"They are not ‘Casualties' or 'Accident and Emergencies' and it is wrong to ask our dedicated and highly trained nurses to take on more than they should deliver.

“Our MIUs are, nurse led units that fulfill an important role treating minor injuries such as sprains and strains, suspected broken bones, cuts and grazes, minor scalds and burns, minor head injuries and other minor medical issues.”


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