We're trying to reduce the number of people in waiting areas of urgent and emergency services, to help lower the covid transmission risk in these areas.
If your condition is not life threatening, please phone 111 so they can assess the urgency of your needs and, if appropriate, make a referral to the urgent access team.
If there is an immediate risk to life, please phone 999.
We can support you if you attend accident and emergency in mental health crisis and require an assessment of your mental health, or if you have been admitted to a medical ward and have specific mental health needs.
If you're not in crisis, your GP can make a referral to your local mental health access team.
You can access our service if you’re aged over 16.
Our service covers Fairfield General Hospital and also the urgent care centre at Rochdale Infirmary – we are available all year round.
What happens after a referral
We accept referrals from staff working within the accident and emergency department, as well as the medical wards at Fairfield General Hospital and Rochdale infirmary.
If you’re referred to us from accident and emergency with urgent needs, we aim to see you within one hour. If you’re on a medical ward, we aim to respond to your referral within 24 hours.
If you come to A&E or the urgent treatment centre, we will complete a screening assessment. If it's appropriate, you may be offered a planned appointment to be assessed within 24 to 72 hours.
We will fully assess you and develop a package of care that meets your needs, as well as signposting you to the appropriate services.
We also provide training and education to our hospital colleagues, so we can all work together to effectively support you.
Our aim
Our aim is to make sure you can get the right support, from the right professional, as quickly as possible.
This will help to:
- Improve your overall experience
- Reduce the likelihood of your problems becoming worse
- Increase your chances of making a full recovery
- Reduce pressure on accident and emergency staff
- Reduce pressure on the acute trust ward staff