About us
Anticoagulants (blood thinning drugs) are medicines that help prevent blood clots. They’re given to people at high risk of getting blood clots, to reduce their chances of developing serious conditions, such as strokes, heart attacks and to people who have already developed a deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism.
Patients will be referred into our service by their GP or by a hospital A&E or inpatient ward.
What happens at your appointment
We provide information to help you understand more about your anticoagulation medicine and why it has been prescribed for you. We monitor your international normalised ratio (INR) which is a measurement of how long it takes the blood to clot on a regular basis and adjust the levels of medication you take. We will help you to take the right dosage of drugs like warfarin as part of your treatment for conditions such as
- atrial fibrillation, a heart condition that causes an irregular and often abnormally fast heart rate
- deep vein thrombosis, a blood clot that develops within a deep vein in the body, usually in the leg, or after heart valve repair or replacement surgery
Patient information
Post anticoagulation service and contact details
St Richard’s Hospital
The anticoagulation clinic at St Richard’s Hospital is open Monday – Friday 9am – 4pm. We are closed on weekends and bank holidays. We are located in the outpatient corridor on the first floor of the main building.
There is a direct line to the clinic 01243 831657. Please note that this is a busy line. Please leave a brief message stating your name, hospital number and contact telephone number. We check the machine on regular basis and will return your call the same day unless a message is left after 4pm then it will be the next working day.
Blood tests
You can choose where to have your INR blood test, if you prefer the GP surgery please book your INR through them.
- St Richards’s pathology Lab (located in the Outpatient department) provides an online booking service. Telephone – 01903 285149 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 4pm) to book blood test appointments.
- Bognor Hospital provides an appointment service on Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 3.10pm. Telephone: 01243 865418.
- On the day of your blood test, please take your last dosing letter with you as this acts as your blood test referral form.
Blood results
- Your blood test will be analysed by St Richards on the same day and the results will be posted to you. You should receive your letter within 3-4 working days. lf you do not receive your results, please contact us.
- We will only call you with your result if we are concerned and may need further information from you.
- We also provide an email service of which you can receive your INR result on the same day. This email can also be used for general enquiries or emailing in your home Coaguchek self-testing result.
Email address: [email protected]
Please use this address to request the email service or write your email address on your INR dosing letter the next time you have a test. Or complete the form in your information pack.
- Please DO NOT email URGENT queries – please call us.
- Please use your dosing letter to communicate any medication updates/missed doses/holidays etc.
Worthing Hospital
The anticoagulation clinic at Worthing Hospital is open Monday – Friday, 9am to 5.30pm. We are closed on weekends and bank holidays.
There is a direct line to the clinic on 01903 285211. Please note this is a busy line which will go onto an answer phone service. Please leave a brief message stating your name, hospital number & contact telephone number. We check the machine on a regular basis and will return you call the same day unless a message is left after 4.30pm, then it will be the next working day.
Blood tests
You can choose where to have your INR blood test, if you prefer the GP surgery please book your INR through them.
- Alternatively Worthing, St Richard’s Hospital and Southlands Hospitals all offer an online booking service. If you do not have access to the internet please telephone 01903 285149 Monday to Friday, 9am to 4pm to book your blood tests at all these hospitals.
- On the day of your blood test, please take your last dosing letter with you as this acts as your blood test referral form.
Blood results
- Your blood test will be analysed by Worthing Hospital the same day and the results will be posted to you. It helps us if you book your INRs before 2pm at Southlands or 4pm at SRH and Worthing to allow time for processing. Tests after this time may not be processed until the following day.
- You should receive your letter within 3-4 working days, if you have not received your letter after 4 working days please call us on 01903 285211.
- We will call you with your result if we are concerned about an abnormal result and require further information from you.
We also provide an email service of which you can receive your INR results the same day. We can take with your consent an email address for a family/ friend or carer who assists you in managing your warfarin. This email address can also be used for general enquiries or emailing in information.
Email: uhsussex-west.anticoagulation
Please DO NOT email URGENT queries- please call us.
Please use this address to request email service or write you email on your INR dosing letter the next time you have a test, or complete the form in your information pack.
- Please use your dosing letter to communicate any medication updates/missed doses/ holidays/ change of address etc.
Southlands Hospital
Please note:
Southlands Hospital do not offer an anticoagulant clinic, however we do offer a blood taking service only for Worthing Hospital’s anticoagulation clinic.
- Phlebotomy (blood tests) is available in the outpatients block at Southlands Hospital, which can be accessed from the entrances in either Hammy Lane or the patient car parking area off Upper Shoreham Road. Alternatively, Southlands Hospitals offer an online booking service.
- Blood tests for anticoagulant patients are available from: Monday to Friday between 9.00am to 1.00pm.
Contact us
Monday to Friday
9:00 am to 1:00 pm
Royal Sussex County Hospital
The anticoagulation Clinic at Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton is open Monday – Friday from 9am to 5pm. We run appointment-only nurse and pharmacist-led clinics on Mondays and Thursdays from outpatients. The clinic is closed on bank holidays and weekends.
The main telephone number for the clinic is 01273 664578. If the call is not answered, please leave a voicemail. We frequently pick up messages and will call you back.
We manage patients on anticoagulation with certain conditions and unusual INR ranges. In Brighton, a large number of patients on warfarin are managed by the Community Pharmacy Anticoagulation Management Service (CPAMS).
Blood tests
Patients on Warfarin and other Vitamin K Antagonist (VKA) anticoagulants who are managed by our service have their INR blood tests at the phlebotomy service in Outpatients on Eastern Road, opposite the main RSCH hospital building. Patients should bring their blue mailer and report to phlebotomy who will give them a ticket to wait for the test.
The Outpatients phlebotomy service is open Monday to Friday 8.30am – 4.45pm. We ask that patients have their test by 2pm at the latest to allow us to get the result and do their dosing on the same day.
Our Phlebotomy service offers an online booking service for your blood tests.
Alternatively, patients can arrange the INR blood test at their GP; if testing at the GP, we recommend an early morning test to ensure the test reaches the lab and is processed to allow us to dose the patient on the same day.
Blood results
We will call you if any urgent changes to dosing are needed or if we need more information.
All Warfarin/other VKA patients receive a blue mailer with their dosing and date of their next INR test. We ask that patients call us if they have had an INR test and not heard from us by phone or postal mailer after 24 hours.