Important information about changes to our services

Changes to Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust services due to Coronavirus (Covid-19)

The Coronavirus (Covid-19) crisis has caused unprecedented demand on services, so we have reluctantly taken the decision to suspend or revise the following services according to NHS England and Public Health England guidance.

We apologise for any inconvenience and will continue to review demand so we can return services to normal as soon as possible.

Please note that visiting in our inpatient and secure sites is currently suspended. Please contact the service to discuss alternative arrangements.

For more information on Coronavirus (COVID-19), click here.

 

Abacus Sexual Health

All existing drop in clinics have been cancelled. A telephone triage and consultation service is in place with a postal service for the delivery of supplies.

Following telephone triage, if a face to face consultation is required you will be offered an appointment at Central Abacus which is situated at the Beat, 6 David Lewis Street, L1 4AP.

Please call Abacus telephone triage on: 0151 247 6555 (Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 4.30pm).

If a face to face consultation is required, please do not attend the clinic if you have either:

  • A new, continuous cough
  • A high temperature

Do not go to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital. Use the 111 online coronavirus service to find out what to do: Only call 111 if you cannot get help online.

 

Adult Speech and Language Therapy Service (Liverpool)

Routine Speech and Language Therapy appointments across Liverpool have been temporarily suspended. 

The service will continue to accept new referrals. New referrals will be triaged and prioritised according to their assessed risk.

  • The Speech and Language Therapy service will be prioritising assessment and advice for swallowing difficulties.
  • Patients with a planned appointment will be contacted to discuss treatment options.
  • Patients on the waiting list will be contacted and informed that all non-urgent appointments have been suspended.
  • Patients will be provided with the Duty Therapist’s contact details to call for advice or if their needs change.

The Speech and Language Therapy duty line is open Monday to Friday between 9am and 4.30pm for information or advice on 0151 296 7403.

If the duty therapist is on another call, please leave a message on the answerphone or with our administration officer and we will contact you as necessary.

Outside of these hours, urgent advice is available via GP, NHS 111, NHS walk-in centres or A&E.

 

Adult Speech and Language Therapy Service (South Sefton)

Routine Speech and Language Therapy appointments across South Sefton have been temporarily suspended. 

The service will continue to accept new referrals. New referrals will be triaged and prioritised according to their assessed risk.

  • The Speech and Language Therapy service will be prioritising assessment and advice for swallowing difficulties.
  • Patients with a planned appointment will be contacted to discuss treatment options.
  • Patients on the waiting list will be contacted and informed that all non-urgent appointments have been suspended.
  • Patients will be provided with the Duty Therapist’s contact details to call for advice or if their needs change.

The Speech and Language Therapy duty line is open Monday to Friday between 9am and 4.30pm for information or advice on 0151 296 7403.

If the duty therapist is on another call, please leave a message on the answerphone or with our administration officer and we will contact you as necessary.

Outside of these hours, urgent advice is available via GP, NHS 111, NHS walk-in centres or A&E.

 

Armistead Centre

Armistead group sessions are temporarily suspended, but support is still available via the Armistead helpline.(0151 247 6560), Monday to Friday 9.30am and 4.30pm

If you require contraception, sexual health testing or screening please call the Abacus phone triage service on 0151 247 6555, Monday to Friday 9.30am to 4.30pm.

 

Bladder and Bowel Service (Liverpool)

The Bladder and Bowel service has temporarily suspended all face to face clinic sessions. Patients will continue to be assessed and access support and advice via telephone consultations.

Patients will be contacted to reschedule planned appointments. New referrals will be triaged via a telephone assessment, prioritised and clinical advice will be available over the telephone.

 

Carers update

We understand that you will be concerned during the present outbreak of the Corona Virus across the world. NHS England and NHS Improvement have issued Visitor Guidance and visiting has been suspended until further notice. The only exceptional circumstances where one visitor – an immediate family member or carer – will be permitted to visit are listed below.

  • The patient you wish to visit is receiving end-of-life care
  • You are the birthing partner accompanying a woman in labour
  • You are a parent or appropriate adult visiting your child.

A child is defined as anyone who has not yet reached their 18th birthday. Children Act 2004

The full guidance is in this document.

If you are a carer of someone who is an inpatient within our services please contact the unit for updates of your loved one.

If you require further information Carers UK have some very useful information about Coronavirus on their web page: Link below:

https://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advice/health/looking-after-your-health/coronavirus-covid-19

 

Community Matrons

Community matrons are working with the district nursing service to prioritise home visits based upon clinical need and priority.

Patients with a planned appointment will be contacted and provided with advice and informed as to the next steps.

 

Dental services

With effect from Thursday 26 March 2020, all routine appointments for the following community dental services have been postponed until further notice:
 
·         Mersey Care Community Dental Services
·         Vauxhall Personal Dental Service
·         River Alt Dental Service
·         Knowsley Orthodontics Service

Emergency Dental Arrangements for Community Dental Service, Vauxhall, River Alt Personal Dental Services and Knowsley Orthodontics:

 In hours 9am to 5pm

If you think you may be developing signs of a dental infection which is usually accompanied by pain and swelling or a fever or your symptoms change in any way, please contact 0151 295 8643. Patients will be clinically triaged by telephone based on clinical need.

Out of hours:

For any problems that occur out of the clinical opening hours, please contact 0161 476 9651.

If at any time you develop any of the following symptoms you should seek urgent medical advice from NHS 111 or from your nearest A & E department:

  • Severe swelling
  • Raised temperature
  • Unexplained lethargy
  • Overall feeling of discomfort and lack of wellbeing.

 

District Nursing Service

We are working with the Community Matrons to prioritise home visits based upon clinical need and priority.

Patients with a planned appointment will be contacted and will be provided with advice and informed as to the next steps.

 

Ear Syringing at Liverpool Treatment Rooms

To support delivery of key critical services and respond to coronavirus the ear syringing clinics provided by the treatment rooms have been temporarily suspended. The service will contact patients to inform them of appointment cancellations.

 

Ear Syringing at South Sefton Treatment Rooms

To support delivery of key critical services and respond to coronavirus the ear syringing clinics provided by the treatment rooms have been temporarily suspended.

The service will contact patients to inform them of appointment cancellations.

 

Life Rooms

All Life Rooms sites have been temporarily closed in line with Public Health England guidelines.

A Pathways Advice service will continue to operate via telephone on 0151 478 6556. It offers non-clinical support for any issues that are affecting someone’s wellbeing.

The mental health and wellbeing provision will continue to be offered via the Life Rooms website at www.liferooms.org

 

Nutrition and Dietetics Service (Liverpool)

All routine Nutrition and Dietetic Service appointments have been temporarily suspended. 

The service will continue to accept referrals. New referrals will be assessed, triaged and prioritised according to clinical risk.

  • Patients with a planned appointment, those referred for home enteral feeding or at high risk of malnutrition will be contacted to discuss treatment options.
  • Patients with existing appointments will be contacted and provided with further advice.
  • Patients on the waiting list will be contacted and informed that all non-urgent appointments have been temporarily suspended.
  • Patients will be provided with patient line contact details to call for advice or if their needs change.

The Nutrition and Dietetics patient line is open Monday to Friday between 8am to 4pm for information or advice on 0151 295 3868. 

Outside of these hours, urgent advice is available via GP, NHS 111, NHS walk-in centres or A&E. 

Patients registered with the Abbott Hospital to Home Service can also call 0800 0183 799 for advice.

 

Nutrition and Dietetics Service (South Sefton)

All routine Nutrition and Dietetic Service appointments have been temporarily suspended.

The service will continue to accept referrals. New referrals will be assessed, triaged and prioritised according to clinical risk.

  • Patients with a planned appointment, those referred for home enteral feeding or at high risk of malnutrition will be contacted to discuss treatment options.
  • Patients with existing appointments will be contacted and provided with further advice.
  • Patients on the waiting list will be contacted and informed that all non-urgent appointments have been temporarily suspended.
  • Patients will be provided with patient line contact details to call for advice or if their needs change.

The Nutrition and Dietetics patient line is open Monday to Friday between 8 am to 4 pm for information or advice on 0151 247 6128.

Outside of these hours, urgent advice is available via GP, NHS 111, NHS walk-in centres or A&E. 

Patients registered with the Abbott Hospital to Home Service can also call 0800 0183 799 for advice.

 

Occupational Therapy Adult Rehabilitation Team (COTART) and Community Falls Team for Liverpool Community

All routine appointments across Liverpool have been temporarily suspended. The service is continuing to complete urgent visits to avoid hospital admission, reduce falls risks and address high risk transfers (i.e. toilet, bed, chair, and stairs). 

The service will continue to accept referrals (e.g. bathing, rehabilitation, access). New referrals will be assessed, triaged and prioritised according to clinical risk.

  • Patients with existing appointments will be contacted and provided with further advice
  • Patients on the waiting list will be contacted and telephone assessed to ascertain the urgency and a visit planned if essential
  • Patients will be informed that all non-urgent appointments have been temporarily suspended.
  • F7vPatients will be provided with the patient line contact details to call for advice or if their needs change.

The COTART/Falls patient line is open Monday to Friday between 8.00 am to 4.00pm for information or advice. Please ring 0151 295 3693.

Outside of these hours, urgent advice is available via GP, NHS 111, NHS walk-in centres or A&E.

 

Phlebotomy (blood sampling service) for Liverpool Community

This was suspended on Monday 23 March 2020 to ensure our resources are diverted to areas that need them most. These clinics are now by appointment and for urgent bloods only:

Breeze Hill Medical Centre, 1-3 Rice Lane, L9 1AD – open from 7.00am until 5.00pm

Kensington Health Centre, Edge Lane, L7 2PH – open from 7.00am until 5.00pm

South Liverpool Treatment Centre, 32 Church Road, L12 2LW – open from 7.00am until 5.00pm.

From April 1, any patients attending for INR blood test please present to reception.

 

Physiotherapy Service (Liverpool Community)

All routine physiotherapy appointments across Liverpool have been temporarily suspended. The service will continue to accept referrals. New referrals will be assessed, triaged and prioritised according to clinical risk.

  • Patients with a planned appointment or those triaged as high risk will be contacted to discuss treatment options
  • Patients with existing appointments will be contacted and provided with further advice
  • Patients on the waiting list will be contacted and informed that all non-urgent appointments have been suspended. They will be provided with patient line contact details to call for advice or if their needs change.

The physiotherapy patient line is open Monday to Friday between 8.30 am to 4.00pm for information or advice on 0151 295 3988.

Outside of these hours, urgent advice is available via GP, NHS 111, NHS walk-in centres or A&E.

 

Podiatry Service (Liverpool and Sefton)

All routine podiatry appointments across Liverpool and South Sefton have been temporarily suspended.  

The service will continue to accept referrals. New referrals will be assessed, triaged and prioritised according to clinical risk.

  • Patients with a planned appointment or those referred for high risk foot wounds will be contacted to discuss treatment options
  • Patients with existing appointments will be contacted and provided with further advice
  • Patients on the waiting list will be informed that all non-urgent appointments have been suspended and will be provided with the patient line contact details to call for advice or if their needs change.

The podiatry patient line is open Monday to Friday between 8.30 am to 4.30pm for information or advice. You can call it on 0151 295 9428.

Outside of these hours, urgent advice is available via GP, NHS 111, NHS walk-in centres or A&E.

 

Skin Service (Well leg clinic)

To support delivery of key critical services and respond to the coronavirus outbreak, the Skin Service has temporarily suspended all well leg clinics. 

The service will contact patients to inform them of appointment cancellation and advice will be available via telephone consultations.

 

So to Speak

The So to Speak team are temporarily suspending attending schools and young people’s services to deliver sexual health education sessions.

If you require information regarding services and arranging education and training sessions in the future please call: 0151 247 6500.

 

South Sefton Diabetes Service

The Diabetes service has temporarily suspended the delivery of face to face education sessions. Existing patients accessing the education sessions will continue to be supported via a telephone assessment and consultation.

New referrals will be triaged via a telephone assessment, prioritised and clinical advice will be available.

 

Talk Liverpool

We continue to accept referrals but have suspended all courses and face to face appointments. We will instead offer assessment and treatment via telephone, on-line therapy via the SilverCloud programme and virtual face to face therapy via Skype.

We be accepted onto Talk Liverpool, an Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) service, you need to be registered to a Liverpool GP and aged 16 years of older.

To see what services they offer and who is appropriate to access those services go to their Can We Help You? web page.

If you are concerned about an existing appointment or having problems referring online please contact Talk Liverpool on 0151 228 2300. 

 

Treatment Rooms Service

This service across Liverpool and South Sefton is being reduced to following four key sites:

  • South Liverpool Treatment Centre, Church Road, Garston, L19
  • Everton Road Health Centre, Everton Road, L6
  • Breeze Hill Medical Centre, 1 Rice Lane, L9
  • Sefton Road Clinic, 67 Sefton Road, L21

Referrals are still being accepted to the service. The patient enquiries line is 0151 475 4007.

If you have an appointment, you will be contacted and triaged to assess if you are able to attend one of the key sites or arrange a home visit if required.

 

Walk In Centres

To support and maintain the safe and effective delivery of care for our patients and staff, the Liverpool NHS walk-in centres will move to a telephone triage and appointment system effective from 25 March 2020.

Patients will be clinically triaged over the phone based on clinical need and will be allocated immediate appointments at an appropriate walk in centre.

The city walk-in centre based at the Beat, 6 David Lewis St, Liverpool, L1 4AF, will be temporarily closed but walk in centres will remain operational from 8am to 8pm, seven days a week at the following three sites:

  • Old Swan walk-in Centre, Crystal Close, L13
  • Garston walk-in centre, at South Liverpool Treatment Centre, Church Road, L19
  • Smithdown children’s Walk- in centre, Smithdown Road, L15 (aged 15 years and under).

Patients will be advised to call: 0300 100 1004 and will be screened for potential symptoms of COVID-19. Those who only have COVID-19 symptoms will be directed to NHS 111 – if you have COVID-19 symptoms and still require walk in centre treatment (e.g. for minor injury), you will still be triaged and seen.

Those with no symptoms will be transferred to a clinician for telephone triage and will be provided with a defined appointment time for further assessment and treatment at the most appropriate walk in centre.

 

Ward 35

Ward 35 at Aintree Hospital: The ward remains closed and visiting is suspended.

 

Wheelchair Service (Liverpool)                 

The service has been temporarily suspended. Referrals will still be accepted and triaged.

The following service contact numbers remain available for enquiries and repairs:

  • Wheelchair service telephone line: 0151 296 7770
  • Wheelchair repair line: 0151 282 5175

All patients on the waiting list will be contacted and informed of the temporary suspension of all non-urgent appointments.