Devizes MP Claire Perry has launched a campaign to re-establish a minor injuries unit in the constituency.
Mrs Perry, who was elected MP in May, said the lack of a minor injuries unit was one of the key concerns of constituents when she was on the campaign trail.
NHS Wiltshire closed the minor injury units at Devizes, Savernake, Melksham, Warminster and Westbury in September 2007 leaving just two minor injury units, at Chippenham and Trowbridge.
Mrs Perry launched her campaign on Thursday and spoke about it that night at the Devizes Health Matters meeting.
She said: “I find it astonishing that we don’t have one minor injury unit for this constituency of 68,000 people. The constituency is in the top 20 lowest density of population but other such constituencies have minor injury units and some have several.”
She said a minor injuries service could be within a GP surgery rather than in a hospital. “It must be cheaper to treat people in a small nurse-led minor injury unit rather than people going to accident and emergency in Swindon or Salisbury,” she said.
She said under the Government’s plans for the NHS, groups of GPs can bid for money to run services, including minor injuries, rather than NHS Wiltshire.
Mrs Perry’s campaign will run for a couple of months. To support it write to her at the House of Commons or email claire.perry.mp@parliament.uk or visit Facebook.
Dr John Heaton-Renshaw, a GP at Southbroom Surgery, said: “It’s a shame the minor injury unit went from Devizes Hospital. It’s entirely feasible that it could be provided in Devizes and it would be great to have a more local service.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here