Hospitals and Accident and Emergency departments (also known as A&E, emergency department, or casualty)
You normally need to be referred to a hospital for treatment, unless you have an emergency.
Patients with additional needs can find information for Dorset County Hospital.
See our Family Information Directory for more information on hospitals in Dorset.
Emergency care
A&E departments offer urgent and emergency care services. They deal with genuine life-threatening emergencies such as bleeding, loss of consciousness or severe chest pain.
Find an accident and emergency department near you.
See our Family Information Directory to find information about accident and emergency departments in Dorset.
Minor injuries units (MIU)
Minor injuries units can treat a number of non-serious injuries, such as sprains, burns, bites, broken bones and wound infections.
Walk in clinics
Community hospitals in Dorset
Find information about our community hospitals.
Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)
Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) helps make sure the NHS listens to patients, their relatives, carers and friends and resolves their concerns as quickly as possible.
PALS also helps the NHS improve services by listening to what matters to patients and their families and making changes where they can.
Find information about PALS on the NHS website.
See our Family Information Directory to find out more about PALS in Dorset.
Healthwatch Dorset
Find out about Healthwatch Dorset's work as an independent service.