| Birmingham and Solihull GP Practices To Open Over Easter Weekend |
| As part of the NHS-wide response to COVID-19 (Coronavirus), GP practices across Birmingham and Solihull will be open during Good Friday (10 April) and Easter Monday (13 April) – with many practices also providing access to primary care on Saturday (11 April) and Sunday (12 April). To access an appointment, patients will need to telephone their GP practice and should not just turn up. GP practices will be treating the bank holidays as ordinary working days to ensure health services are maintained across Birmingham and Solihull. Local pharmacies are also being asked to provide support, by opening from at least 2-5pm on Good Friday and Easter Monday, with many others continuing to open their doors on the Saturday and Sunday. There are over 300 pharmacies in Birmingham and Solihull and these can be accessed without breaking the rules of the current lockdown. Their trained pharmacists are on hand to provide the best clinical advice and over-the-counter treatments to safely manage unpleasant but minor illnesses. Dr Peter Ingham, a GP and Clinical Chair of NHS Birmingham and Solihull Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), said: “In this difficult time, people need to know that their GP practice is going to be there for them this Easter weekend. Birmingham and Solihull’s high street pharmacists will also be available too and using them this weekend for minor illnesses will save people time and reduce pressure on GPs. “We are all working hard to ensure patients have access to primary care services when they need them the most, and offering appointments this weekend, including the Good Friday and Easter Monday bank holidays, is a great way of supporting not only our patients but the wider NHS. People can also do their bit by first using pharmacists if they or a family member has a minor illness.” If you have symptoms of COVID-19 (a high temperature or a new, continuous cough), please continue to use NHS111 if required. To protect others, do not go to your GP practice, pharmacy or hospital. Please follow any recommended isolation period that can be found on the 111 website. Further information on healthcare options during the COVID-19 pandemic are available on NHS Birmingham and Solihull CCG’s website https://www.birminghamandsolihullccg.nhs.uk/your-health. People can also find the details of their local pharmacy https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-pharmacy/ |