Calls for the return of minor injuries units to two market towns in Wiltshire have been renewed.
Melksham has not had a minor injuries unit for nearly a quarter of a century. The previous unit was closed in 2002.
Meanwhile, Devizes has lacked an MIU since 2007. While a new £11 million health centre opened on the edge of the town in late 2022, it does not have a minor injuries unit.
The closest minor injuries units are in Trowbridge or Chippenham. Both are six to seven miles from Melksham, and more than 11 miles from Devizes.
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Now Brian Mathew, who is the MP for the two towns, has asked Health Secretary Yvette Cooper to support the development of a local minor injuries unit in his constituency.
"Residents here currently have no local minor-injuries unit, meaning that anyone needing treatment for a broken bone, wound or any non-life-threatening injury has to travel to larger hospitals outside our constituency," he told the minister.
"This is a real burden for those without access to transport, and it also places unnecessary pressure on A&E waiting times in Bath, Swindon and Salisbury as non-local patients are adding pressure.
"I believe securing a minor injuries unit would benefit residents and ease pressure on the wider surrounding system alike."
He also raised GP waiting times, GP provision for new housing developments, and NHS waiting times and availability as "issues that are consistently raised with me by constituents."
"Far too many residents are waiting far too long to simply get an appointment to see their GP, let alone be seen for anything urgent," he said.
On GP provision, he said: "A number of significant housing developments are proposed or under construction in my constituency and residents are rightly concerned that GP surgeries and other necessary health infrastructure are not being planned for with the local plans in this growth.
"I would urge the Department of Health and Social Care to work with local planning authorities to ensure that health provision is built in from the outset of these plans, not added as an afterthought once their residents arrive."
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And on NHS dentists, he said: "Access to an NHS remains incredibly difficult for many in my constituency, with some going without much-needed treatment for years.
"This is a crisis that continues to cause real harm and I would welcome an update on what steps are being taken to address it."
Dr Mathew is not a medical doctor. He holds a PhD in water and sanitation.
He recently announced a tour of village halls in his constituency running between Monday, August 24 and Saturday, August 29.
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