Speke HC Yes it's…read morejust a health centre, but actually its worth a Yelp! It's a brand new £7million development close to John Lennon Airport on the South side of Liverpool. A wind turbine, solar panels and ground heat provide the building with renewable energy. They harvest rainwater, of which there is plenty and have used as many recycled and harvested materials in the build as possible. It's a big, modern inviting health centre and as a Liverpool NHS worker myself, it is definitely one of my favourite health centres to work at. There isn't a huge car park, but as the building next door is the police station, your car is pretty safe on the streets close by. Services held here include, Diabetes Clinic, Family Planning, Minor Surgery, Treatment Room, Podiatry, COPD Clinic, Young Persons Clinic, Asthma Clinic, Phlebotomy Clinic and Mother and Baby sessions and access to an onsite chemist. Ring before attending any clinic though, to check dates and times of course or the NHS website.

CAB is a wonderful place for people who need advice on many thing; benefits, housing issues,…read moreracism, sexism, dismissals, immigration and many other things. The staff are friendly and helpful and without the help of one wonderful lady called Sue I don't know what I would have done. A solicitor is also available on certain days although appointments both for the solicitor and CAB staff is advisable but not always necessary. Parking is close by but spaces nearby get filled quickly, but other car spaces are available and public transport into the city is easy. There are several lifts up to the 1st floor of the building, so disabled access is available as well as stairs for those who don't like lifts.

Livingston Drive Family Health Clinic is situated at the start of Lark Lane and close to Livingston…read moreDrive and Aigburth Road. Unfortunately there is no GP surgery held here but there are various clinics that take place here. I attended here once for a pre operative ECG. Inside was very neat and tidy and seemed to be very well looked after. The staff on the reception were kind, helpful and friendly and took me to the area I needed to go to. My ECG was carried out without fuss or stress and I was sent on my way. Its a shame that more clinics aren't held here such as physio as it's such a convenient place.

Well Being specialises in Holistic healing and offers a diverse range of therapies: from reiki,…read morearomatherapy, facials and massage to hypnotherapy, crystal healing and past life regression. Obviously this sort of thing doesn't appeal to everyone, and I myself have little experience of or interest in holistics, however the therapies are unusual and quite rare in the area and I'm sure lots of people will be pleased to have such amenities. Weekly workshops are held at the Well Barn: Yoga, African drumming and Psychic development which are only around £6 a session. Again these are quite specialist classes; they are fascinating and quite original and will appeal to many I am sure. There is a beautiful shop at the Well Barn selling an extensive range of gifts such as crystals, incense, tarot cards, Buddhas and angels, jewellery and cds. A unique venture set in a lovely rural area.

Appleton Village Surgery was (is?) my local GP's place. They have about 10 doctors there, some of…read morethem obviously better than others. The building is kinda old and skanky, but friendly in a weird north-of-England type of way. The worst thing about the place is how hard it is to get an appointment. A few years ago the government decided that you should always be able to get an appointment for the same day, which sounds great. However the way Appleton have implemented the edict is that you have to be ready by your phone at 8am ready to press redial over and over again for 30 minutes. If you phone at nine there will be no appointments left. It's like getting a Glastonbury ticket. Tough, but if you're determined you can get it.

I think that Appleton group practice give an excellent service . People have got nothing to moan…read moreabout. Ok sometimes you might get a bit frustrated over the appiontment system , but if you treat the receptionist with respect and remeber that they have their work cut out trying to accomadate everyone . They will always try and help.. I have found nearly all the Doctors to be good , there is just one who i wouldnt see , and of course wouldnt mention here. On the hole we got marvelous treatment .. Yes the building is a bit depressing and not fit for purpose,,But so what!!!!!

Well I must say, having visited hospitals all over the world as a traveller, there's a lot to be…read moresaid about the NHS, despite its faults! Arrowe Park is a fantastic hospital, I was born here, and have been here on several occasions since for treatment with various ailments. I've never had a bad experience, the hospital is always clean, the staff have always been professional and dedicated and I haven't died yet! A friend of mine was here not long ago suffering from a bad case of Pneumonia, and things didn't look good. However, with care and top medical attention, the staff at Arrowe Park soon had him back on his feet and in ship shape! As well as being a centre for medical excellence, the hospital has a cafe, a restaurant, a book and flower shop and a gift shop. It's basically got everything you'll need on tap if you have to stay here!

I have had dealings with this hospital since I was about five years old. My nan has been admitted…read moreinnumerable times with various illnesses of varying degrees, she has always been impressed by the standard of care and lavishes respect and thanks upon all of the staff. However, as I have grown older and am more aware of behaviours, language and the appropriate level of care required, I have to disagree with her. I believe my nan is thankful for any help and any painkillers and medication when she is ill, but in my opinion this is not enough. When a patient is admitted, especially for a long time I thin kthey deserve attention from and time with the relevant people, be it doctors, nurses or surgeons, and I don't feel she has got it. She was recently discharge from hospital and is still extremely sick, I think it was too soion for her to leave the hospital. When in Arrowe Park, which was just under a month, she was moved from ward to ward and nurse to nurse, none of which I was very comfortable with caring for her; they were brusque and blase and often rude. Doctors who looked younger than myself were diagnosing her but not listening to anything she had to say- which was highly relevant to her current condition, such as medication she was on or even the fact she had certain operations or conditions before! The diagnosis changed day to day and was never really fully explained to patient or family. The behaviour of one nurse in particular was disgusting- even nan could not forgive it. She was rude to visitors, horrid to patients- including a very old woman in the next bed who could not speak English, force feeding her roughly and admonishing her when her weak hands dropped something on the floor. Worst of all this nurse did not give my nan her tea until several hours after the rest of her bay which affected my nan' diabetes as she could not take her insulin. The nurse later confessed she did not know nan was diabetic (despite this being a diabetic ward!) she then proceeded on two occasions to give incorrect levels of insulin which caused serious sickness and blackouts. Disgusting

As far as local hospitals go, this is wonderful. On arrival…read moreyou are immediately confronted with an information desk, staffed by very knowledgeable people - volunteers, it would seem. Within any of the departments there are different receptionists who look after all of the patients and check that they know what is going on, then ensure that the patients get to their appointments on time. All the medical staff that I have come into contact with, and that's a lot now, have been very supportive and have explained everything in great detail. I'm sure this is very reassuring to most patients but, as part of my second degree included the use of cNMR, CTI and similar imaging techniques, it wasn't really necessary in my case. The small shopping area/canteen near the main entrance is also well staffed and has a good supply of basic items. A small glitch occurred when I was prescribed some medication, went to the pharmacy for it and found that they can only accept payment in cash. I only carry cash when I Know I will need it, and then just the bare minimum. I ended up sending a cheque through the post as my next appointment isn't soon enough to clear their weekly accounting. Another small complaint has to be the car-parking. Although a hundred times better organised than Warrington, the available space is far too small! This was built on open spaces originally, surely the planners could have predicted it would need more than 40-odd spaces? After all, Halton Lea (formerly The Shopping City) was built at the same time as a futuristc shopping mall, with all sorts of transport facilities. If you need to be there in the morning time, go a little early or, better still, have someone drop you off. Update - January, 2009 Have just found another moan. They don't actually have a proper crash team here. If you have any sort of heart complaint while in the care of Halton, they send you to Warrington Hospital's A&E. Great in my case, as I live there, but could be a problem for others, especially if they've left their car on the carpark! I still think it is a very good hospital, notwithstanding the gripes.

i find halton hospital one of the better ones in the five boroughs however more and more are being…read moresent to other hospitals particulary warrington,however there is a hospital bus direct from halton to warrigton hospital,ask for a timetable,i did not know this and without transport at the time i found it difficult to get to my appointment ontime,i had a operation here and was well cared for however i did get concerned regarding the more elderly patients who seemed to be left, nurses too busy,to give the extra attention they needed,also i found for some reason they kept losing my records other than this i prefer here to some of the other hospitals.

The NHS and sexual health centre provides a walk in service for anybody who wishes to see a nurse…read moreon the day. Once you reach the reception, they will ask you for a couple details such as your name and address and to confirm your date of birth. All these details will remain confidential and is entirely up to you if you want to pass reasons for your visit to your local GP. This is a good place to pop in especially if you're rushed but not for anything that you are deeply concerned about because they will not provide any prescriptions; instead they will advise you to book your GP for further consultancy. After all, staffs are only nurses and not doctors. If you ever visit here, it's best to arrive earlier than late as it does get packed which means you could wait up to an hour.