Accident and Emergency
Over the winter months, the NHS sees more people visiting their GP, more people attending Accident & Emergency (A&E) and therefore, the highest increase in the number of people being admitted to hospital.
This leads to a need for people to be able to access services quickly and easily and ‘flow’ between services smoothly, without delays.
UHNM is working with local NHS organisations to put in place plans which mean people will receive the care they need, when they need it, in the best place.
People also need to be supported to return home as soon as possible following a stay in hospital, with the correct care where it is needed. Find out more here about Home Care is Best Care
Do you need medical help? Get to the help you need. Use NHS 111 online to get assessed and directed to the right place for you.
Blood Borne Virus (BBV) testing in our Emergency Departments (ED)
From March 2025, if you’re over 16 and have a blood test in the Emergency Departments at the Royal Stoke University Hospital or County Hospital, Stafford, we will check to see if you have a blood borne virus (BBV). These include hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV.
It is an ‘opt-out’ test, meaning we will screen blood tests from everybody over 16 unless you tell us not to.
This testing is part of a national NHS project to help detect as many undiagnosed people as possible and provide potentially life-saving treatment. The project has already been running in other parts of the UK including London, Nottingham and Manchester.
- What does an Emergency Department Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C or HIV test involve?
To test for Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and HIV an additional sample will be added alongside other blood tests. If you are not required to have a blood test during your visit, you will not be tested for BBVs.
- How can I opt out?
If you do not want to have your blood tested for Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C or HIV please inform the member of staff taking your blood.
- How do I find out my results?
- If your result is negative
A negative result means that you did not have Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C or HIV when we did the test. If you do not hear from us within 14 days you can assume your test results are negative.
- If your test result is reactive
If your test is reactive (provisional positive) we will contact you directly to arrange an appointment with the relevant specialist service to discuss the next steps.
If we are unable to process your test for technical reasons you will be contacted by a member of the team and offered a retest.
What is the purpose of the test?
The purpose is to identify and initiate any treatment or follow up for those patients who have blood borne virus infections. A proportion of the public carry these viruses without symptoms, and this aims to get them treatment and prevent spread in the community. There are already existing systems in place to screen certain ‘at risk’ groups in the community, such as the sexual health screening and the Hepatitis outreach programmes. This aims to identify cases from those who don’t necessarily think they are at risk. Anyone in the following categories may be at risk of having a blood borne virus:
- Has ever used intravenous drugs and/pr shared needles
- Has ever had a blood transfusion
- Has had a tattoo
- Has had surgery, particularly abroad in some countries or in unregulated practices
- Has had unprotected sexual intercourse
- Lives in close contact with someone who is hepatitis B positive (whether diagnosed or undiagnosed)
Where does my sample get tested?
The samples get tested on site in the virology laboratories at Royal Stoke University Hospital. Some follow up testing may result in the sample being sent to an external laboratory for further testing.
I did not have blood tests in the Emergency Department, how can I access Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and HIV screening in the community?
Testing is available via your GP and sexual health services.