In an Emergency
If you, or someone you know has concerns about their immediate health and you or they are already registered with one of our services then please use the following contact methods to get the help you need:
Mental Health Services – During Office Hours
1. Call your Care Co-Ordinator.
If they are not available or you do not not have their phone number then you should contact your local Community Mental Health Team. All their contact details can be found in our Service Directory
2. Call our main Switchboard: 01865 741717
Mental Health Services – Outside of Office Hours
1. Call our main Switchboard: 01865 741717
One of our trained call handlers will signpost you to the most appropriate service depending on your level of need. This may include your Out of Hours GP, a voluntary organisation or our Community Acute Service.
Community Health Services (non mental health), Oxfordshire
1. Accident and Emergency
For life threatening conditions, call 999 – Accident & Emergency (A&E). Emergency services are very busy. You should only attend Emergency Departments (A&E) if you are very badly hurt or if you become very seriously ill (life-threatening). This would include life threatening choking; chest pain; blacking out; severe blood loss or severe breathing difficulty. There are Emergency Departments at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, the Horton General Hospital in Banbury and the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading.
If you want urgent advice on what to do or who to see then you should phone 111. This number is free to call from all landlines and mobiles. In some areas of Oxfordshire it is not yet activated. If you find that this applies to you when you call 111 then redial 0845 345 8995
2. Minor Injury Units and First Aid Units
Minor Injuries Units are for injuries, such as deep cuts, eye injuries, broken bones, severe sprains, minor head injury, minor burns and scalds. Many people go to Accident and Emergency when they could be treated just as well and probably quicker at a Minor Injuries Unit. In Accident and Emergency staff must give priority to serious and life-threatening conditions, so if you go there with a minor injury you may have to wait longer to be seen. It is better to go to a Minor Injuries Unit if there is one locally.
You don’t need an appointment to visit a Minor Injuries Unit. They are run by a team of highly qualified nurse practitioners with a lot of experience and expertise in the treatment of minor injuries. Minor Injuries Units can treat a wide variety of problems including cuts and grazes, sprains and strains, broken bones (fractures), bites and stings (including problems: minor eye infections, scratches or something stuck in your eye).
Some hospitals provide a First Aid Unit instead of a Minor Injuries Unit. First Aid Units provide a similar service to that provided by a Minor Injuries Unit except that they do not have the support of an x-ray service. If you think that your injury may require an x-ray then you should telephone 111 or the First Aid Unit for advice prior to attending.
For more details on these services please see our Minor Injuries Unit / First Aid Units page.
3. Out of Hours Doctors
Telephone: 111
(In some areas of Oxfordshire it is not yet activated. If you find that this applies to you when you call 111 then redial 0845 345 8995)
The out-of-hours service provides urgent medical care from 6.30pm to 8.00am on weekdays and around the clock at weekends and bank holidays. It can help you if, for example, you have a fever or sickness but do not need to go to a hospital Emergency Department.
- Remember to call first before going to an urgent care centre
- Patients do not need to register for urgent care services
4. Urgent dental services when your dentist is closed
For emergency advice or treatment please call: 111
(In some areas of Oxfordshire it is not yet activated. If you find that this applies to you when you call 111 then redial 0845 345 8995) between 6.30pm to 9.30pm Monday to Thursday, 9.00am to 6.00pm at weekends, 9.00am to 5.00pm and 6.00pm to 9.00pm on bank holiday weekends and bank holidays.
This service is available to all Oxfordshire residents (including temporary residents and visitors). Callers will be phoned back for triage and provided with either advice or offered appointments for emergency treatment. This service is for people with urgent or emergency needs only and therefore does not provide routine care or repeat appointments.
For patients without a regular dentist who have a dental emergency during practice opening hours, please contact the NHS Oxfordshire Dental Helpline for details of NHS dental practices offering emergency appointments: Telephone 01865 337267, 08000 113 824 or email
Eye Emergencies
The Eye Emergency Department is open between the hours of 8am and 6pm (last appointment at 5pm) Monday to Friday. During the weekend an emergency clinic is held from 8.30am to 4pm on both days. This department operates a booking system whereby patients are assessed either by phone or in person and offered an appointment.
For more information see www.oxfordeyehospital.nhs.uk/about/eyeemergencies.asp
About us
Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of specialist mental health services in five different localities as well as physical healthcare to patients in Oxfordshire.
Contact us
- 01865 741 717
Trust Headquarters
4000 John Smith Drive
Oxford Business Park South
Oxford OX4 2GX
Contacting us out of hours
- 01865 741717
If you, or someone you know has concerns about their immediate health and you or they are already registered with one of our services then we have lots of information on how to contact us.
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Interpreting service
