Hospital unit treats 'record-breaking' numbers

The Royal Surrey Foundation NHS Trust has said a "record-breaking" number of patients were treated at a hospital unit last month.

A total of 1,891 patients were seen at the Haslemere Minor Injuries Unit in May – a 30-40% rise compared with the same period in 2024.

It comes after Haslemere Community Hospital closed two inpatient wards, following an announcement by a nearby GP surgery that it could no longer provide doctors to staff them.

The trust told the BBC that the wards' inpatient services were "still paused".

Run by a team of nurses, Haslemere Minor Injuries Unit said it treated every patient within the national four-hour waiting time target.

The site, which opened 22 years ago, does not see patients with serious, life-threatening injuries or illnesses.

But the trust said the unit was set to be turned in an urgent treatment centre "later this summer", meaning staff would be able to treat conditions such as ear and throat infections, skin complaints, rashes, high temperatures and abdominal pain.

The trust said the Haslemere unit saw 17,149 patients across the last financial year.

It added that in recent months, there had been "several new and emerging trends in attendance, including a noticeable rise in patients travelling from the Guildford area to use the service".

"I'm incredibly proud of our teams here," Charlotte Morley, lead emergency practitioner at the Minor Injuries Unit, said.

"It is testament to everyone's hard work and dedication to their roles."

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