Emergency Department
If you have chest pain or severe breathing difficulties you should dial 999 for an ambulance immediately.
The Emergency Department (ED) at Dorset County Hospital provides a 24 hour service and is for serious injuries and life threatening conditions.
If you have a minor injury which is not life threatening or serious you can attend your local Minor Injuries Unit or Urgent Treatment Centre. Find your local MIU or UTC on the Dorset HealthCare website.
If you are not sure which service would best suit your needs please call 111 or visit NHS 111 online. More information about health and care options are available on the NHS Stay Well Dorset website.
What to expect from a visit to the ED
Patients arriving by emergency ambulances and helicopters will be assessed immediately and treatment commenced accordingly.
If you arrive to the department by yourself (not in an ambulance), you will be booked in at reception and asked to wait to be triaged. The triage team will take a brief history of your symptoms. They will then decide who you need to see, and what will happen next with your care.
The order in which people are seen after this point is decided by the severity of their condition. Sometimes people who look well may need urgent care, and these people will be seen before you, even if they arrived later.
We have a large multi-disciplinary team, and you may be seen by different healthcare professionals, depending on your condition.
If your condition is not life-threatening, you may be directed to other services where you may be seen more quickly, such as a Minor Injuries Unit.
You may need to be referred to a specialist within the hospital and require admission directly to the relevant ward or be asked to return for an appointment in a different department another day.
How to find us
The way the public accesses Dorset County Hospital’s Emergency Department (ED) has changed (as of 3 March 2025) while we build our new ED and Critical Care Unit.
People arriving at the current ED on foot or by car will access the department via South Wing, Entrance 1.
Read more about the development of our new ED and Critical Care Unit on the Your Future Hospital section.