Do GP's do stitches?

cloud493

Hi there if this is wrong place please lock or move.
I received a wound 24 hours ago? that was quite deep, and the sides haven't started coming back together. Would a GP be able to sort me out with stitches or staples?

stop animal cruelty

ya a doctor or nurse would stitch you, but l guess if its a very bad & deep wound you might be sent to hospital. think you can only get staples in hospital also.

cloud493

Well it didn't bleed much, nowhere near an artery or vein or nothing, and it doesn't hurt much. Its not that deep at all, I'd just prefer to be safe than sorry.

Private Joker

it depends on where it is tbh, doctors wont stitch on the face due to litigation issues . this is my experience,

Nonoperational

A GP could assess it anyway if your not happy but they might not suture it if it's 24 hours old.

stop animal cruelty

ya best thing to do is get it checked by the doc & see if they can do anything for you....better to be safe than sorry!

cloud493

Yeah thats true. Its not that bad, I'd just leave it like, but I wanna avoid the hospital and an infection

Bloodwing

Depending on how deep it is and where it is paper stitches might do the job, you can get them in most pharmacies. Ask the pharmacist to take a look at it, they should be able to tell you if the paper stitches will do the job.

That's what i did last time I had a cut and the pharmacist recommended going to the Doc who sorted me out.

cloud493

Cheers guys. One last thing, I haven't got an appointment at the GP I'm thinking, if I just turn up will I be able to take any available empty slots? Am I asking for the doctor or nurse?

spagboll

go to the doc, do you need a tetanus shot? are there signs of infection? is there tendon or nerve damage? is there dirt etc still in it? and all the other things the doc is trained to figure out

stop animal cruelty

most practices only go by appointment unless its an emergency, but theres no harm going down anyway they might by fine with people walking in with no appointment or else you could ring first thing in the morning. your prob as well off tp ask for the doc, nurse would prob get him or her to have a look at it anyway.

cloud493

I've actually just taken the bandage off to have a look, and it's scabbing over. Worth going still?

stop animal cruelty

what did you cut it with?

locum-motion

Bloodwing wrote: »

Depending on how deep it is and where it is paper stitches might do the job, you can get them in most pharmacies. Ask the pharmacist to take a look at it, they should be able to tell you if the paper stitches will do the job.

That's what i did last time I had a cut and the pharmacist recommended going to the Doc who sorted me out.

I am a pharmacist. Assessment of a wound to decide if it needs a stitch is not part of the training of a pharmacist. When someone comes to me with a wound, I can basically only advise/assist on first aid - that is, stopping bleeding until the patient can be assessed by a doctor. Sometimes, though, it's obvious through plain old common sense that a stitch isn't needed, but I would always send a deep or gaping wound or a wound that doesn't stop bleeding quite easily to the doctor.
I tend to err on the side of caution; I don't want to be sued for a disfiguring scar if I tell someone it's OK but it turns out a stich was needed.

sam34

please read the charter