Tricia D’Orsi is the chief nurse at Castle Point and Rochford Clinical Commissioning Group.

Tricia has worked in a variety of care settings, but the majority of her career has been in General Practice, where she once credited as being one of the leading Practice Nurses in the country by the Royal College of Nursing.

In her role as Chief Nurse, Tricia sits on the board of the CCG Governing body, a role which carries a wide range of responsibilities including; protecting the interests of patients, working closely with senior healthcare professionals and management to offer advice about improvements to services, monitoring and evaluating the quality and safety of care provision locally and driving forward increased choices for patients.

People living in south east Essex are able to get help and support from a GP 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, by using the GP out of hours service and the GP weekend service.

The quickest and easiest way of reaching a GP when the local surgery is closed is to call NHS 111.

They will provide you with local help and guidance to get an appointment with an out of hours GP, or a GP from the weekend service.

They can also help you to access other local NHS services.

In the Castle Point and Rochford area there are two main places offering pre-bookable appointments at weekends, and on bank holidays.

Similarly in the Southend area, there are another two places offering pre-bookable appointments and appointments on the same day, at weekends and on bank holidays.

The Castle Point and Rochford weekend GP service hubs are located at Audley Mills in Rayleigh and at Hawkesbury Road, in Canvey. The Southend weekend GP service hubs are located at the Southend Medical Centre in London Road and coming soon from North Shoeburyness Practice in Frobisher Road.

GP appointments can be pre-booked in both areas between 10am and 3pm on Saturdays and Sundays either through your local GP practice or via NHS111, as well as bank holidays, for people who need to see a GP or a nurse.

The GP out-of-hours service and the GP weekend service is boosted with additional cover at times like Christmas and New Year, so we can support those who need it most over the festive holiday period.

By calling NHS 111 you can speak to someone about your health needs or concerns and they can book you with our local services, or they can signpost you to other NHS service, more suitable for your health needs.

Don’t forget some pharmacies are also open until 11pm, seven days per week. Check NHS.uk for pharmacy opening times.