Urgent Care Near Waterlooville: A&E, UTCs, 111 or 999

The nearest A&E to Waterlooville

The nearest Emergency Department (A&E) to Waterlooville is at Queen Alexandra Hospital, Southwick Hill Road, Cosham, Portsmouth, PO6 3LY, run by Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust. Its Emergency Department is for serious injuries and life-threatening emergencies only — for anything else, an urgent treatment centre or NHS 111 will usually get you seen faster.

Urgent treatment centres near Waterlooville

Urgent treatment centres (UTCs) deal with many of the problems people otherwise go to A&E for — broken bones, sprains, cuts, stomach pain, skin infections and fevers — without an appointment, and you don't need to be registered with a GP to use one.

St Mary's Health Campus, PO3 6DW, in Portsmouth, runs an urgent treatment centre from 8am to 8pm.

Petersfield Community Hospital, GU32 3LB, runs an urgent treatment centre from 8am to 8pm.

Gosport War Memorial Hospital, PO12 3PW, runs an urgent treatment centre with slightly longer hours, from 8am to 10pm.

All three are run under Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust's "know where to go" guidance, and none require a booked appointment — you can walk in during opening hours.

When to call 111 instead of going straight to A&E or a UTC

NHS 111 (by phone or at 111.nhs.uk) is the right first call when you're not sure what to do or need advice on symptoms. They can point you to the most appropriate local service for your problem, and in some cases can book you an arrival slot at A&E or a UTC, cutting your wait once you arrive. If you're unsure whether something needs urgent treatment or can wait for your GP, 111 is a safe place to start.

When to call 999

Call 999, or go straight to the Emergency Department at Queen Alexandra Hospital, for genuinely life-threatening problems: signs of a heart attack or stroke, heavy bleeding, seizures, or severe injuries. These are the situations the Emergency Department is set up for — using it for a minor injury or ailment that a UTC could treat means a longer wait for you and everyone else who needs it more urgently.

A quick way to decide

If it's life-threatening, call 999 or go to Queen Alexandra Hospital's Emergency Department. If it's urgent but not life-threatening — a suspected broken bone, a bad cut, a high fever, a stomach problem — an urgent treatment centre at St Mary's, Petersfield or Gosport is usually quicker and just as capable of treating it. If you're not sure which category it falls into, call 111 first and let them route you.

Children's urgent care

The same urgent treatment centres and Queen Alexandra Hospital's Emergency Department treat children as well as adults, and NHS 111 can advise on symptoms for a baby or child just as it can for an adult, including guidance specific to young children where the triage questions differ. If you're at all worried about a young baby, NHS 111 is still the right first call rather than waiting to see if symptoms settle, and they will always err on the side of getting a child seen if there's any doubt.

Is urgent care free?

Emergency Department treatment at Queen Alexandra Hospital and treatment at any of the urgent treatment centres listed here is free at the point of use for anyone, under the same NHS principles as a GP visit — there's no charge for walking in, and no referral or registration is needed beforehand. Bring photo ID or an NHS number if you have one to speed up the paperwork, but not having either won't stop you being treated.

Using 111 online instead of calling

If you'd rather not wait on the phone, 111.nhs.uk runs the same triage questions online and can point you to the same options — an urgent treatment centre, A&E, a pharmacy, or self-care advice — based on your symptoms. It's available around the clock, the same as the phone line, and can be quicker for a straightforward query where you don't need to talk something through.