Trent Vale Medical Practice - patient information

How to make best use of our services

This information page is intended to help you make best use of our services. Please take a few minutes to read this and should you have any questions do not hesitate to ask our reception staff who will be pleased to help.

Medical advice

For general medical advice, 24 hours a day, you can phone NHS Direct on 0845 4647. This is particularly helpful if you are not sure whether you need to see a nurse or doctor.

Useful web links are provided here allowing you to look up patient information on a wide variety of medical conditions, advice on self help and best treatments.

If you feel that your medical enquiry requires the attention of a nurse or doctor, but is not an emergency, please book an appointment to speak to the nurse or doctor by phone, or book an appointment to see the nurse or doctor in the surgery.

If you suffer or witness a sudden collapse, severe breathing difficulties, chest pain or other medical emergency, please phone 999 without delay.

Booking an appointment

You can book your appointment by phone (01782-746898 4 lines) between 8am-1pm and 1pm-6pm, in person at the surgery during opening hours, or via the internet (24 hours a day). To make an internet booking you require an access code, which will be your unique identifier. Please ask the receptionist to provide you with your code and instructions on how to use this.

Remember that when booking your appointment you may be asked what service you require. This is to help decide who is the most appropriate person to help you with your problem.


Home visits
We are able to provide a much better quality of care at the surgery than in your own home. Doctors can see about 5 patients in the surgery in the same time it takes to visit one patient at home.
It is for these reasons that we would ask all patients to attend the surgery whenever possible. We are happy to visit patients who are genuinely unable to attend and we follow the Local Medical Committee's recommendations on what conditions or situations require a home visit. A copy of this can be found at reception.

If you feel that you require a home visit, please try to telephone before 10am.

Out of hours
The surgery is open between the hours of 8am-6pm Monday to Friday - except on Thursday, when the surgery closes at 1pm. Should you have concerns regarding your health out of these hours, please first consider whether seeking medical advice can wait until the next working day. If in doubt please phone NHS direct on 0845 4647 or search the web links on our website.

Once you have decided that assessment of your medical problem cannot wait until the next working day, please contact North Staffs Urgent Care on 01782-719100.

If you have suffered an injury that needs treatment you are advised to attend the A&E department at the University Hospital of North Staffordshire on Princes Road, Hartshill. Alternatively, for minor problems, you can attend the NHS Walk-In centre at the Haywood Hospital (High Lane, Stoke-on-Trent, 01782-581112). The A&E service is only intended for injuries. Please contact North Staffs Urgent Care for all other medical problems out of hours.

The surgery is open for pre-booked appointments some evenings and weekends.

Dental care out of hours
Please contact your own dentist for out of hours emergency dental care. If you are not registered with a dentist you can phone the emergency dentist number 01782-425846.


Please do not contact the North Staffs Urgent Care, the A&E department or any NHS Walk-In centre for emergency dental care.