Emergency Contraception Where Can I Get It?

There are three important things to remember about emergency contraception:

1) You can take emergency contraception up to 72 hours (three days) after having unprotected sex

BUT

2) The sooner you take it the more effective it is, so get help quickly!

3) You can get free, confidential advice about contraception WHATEVER your age. It’s a really good idea to get proper advice about contraception, and hopefully you won’t need emergency contraception again.

Where can I go for emergency contraception?

If there is a Brook Clinic near you, and its open, that’s a really good choice.

All the Contraception and Sexual Health Clinics in Cornwall will provide free emergency contraception during their opening times. You won’t need an appointment, even if it says appointment only.

What if none of the clinics are open in time for me to get there?

More than ten towns in Cornwall have pharmacies where you can get free emergency contraception if you are under 19.

To find out about ones near you, please click through to our services section and scroll down the page until you get to the alphabetical list of all services. You will find the pharmacies listed as ’Emergency Contraception from your local pharmacist’.

But I don’t live near these towns!

You can buy emergency contraception from most other pharmacists, but you must be 16 or over, and it costs £25.

I’m broke, and/or under 16!

Your own GP will provide emergency contraception, but you have to get an urgent appointment. If you are too embarrassed to ask out loud at the surgery, you could hand a note to the receptionist explaining you need an urgent appointment to discuss emergency contraception.

I could never go to my own doctor. I know people who work at the surgery, and I would probably bump into someone else I know.

If you really don’t want to go to your own GP, you could ask for an appointment with any other practice, as long as you don’t already get contraception services with your GP.

There’s no other surgery in my village, and anyway, wouldn’t another doctor just tell my GP?

Absolutely not! Your consultation would be completely confidential. There are a few other options though. There are several young people’s drop in services which provide emergency contraception, usually with a nurse prescribing. You will need to check opening times:

Care Centre, at Dracaena View, Falmouth

HEDZ at Saltash Community Clinic

Young Person’s Contraception and GU Clinic, Treliske, Wednesday afternoons

It’s Saturday evening, everywhere is closed, and I’ve got no transport.

If none of these ideas are helpful, because of opening times, or where you live, you can get emergency contraception from Kernowdoc out of your regular doctors opening hours. If you can’t get to the Kernowdoc centre, the doctor may do a telephone consultation, and ring through a prescription to your nearest chemist.

Too much information, I just can’t decide what’s best!

If you just cannot work out how to get emergency contraception in time, try ringing Share - freephone 0800 181033 between 10am and 4.30pm weekdays. They will help talk through your problem, and may even be able to help you access transport to get to your nearest service.

Well, perhaps I’ll just leave it and hope it will be OK.

Whatever you do, don’t just cross your fingers and hope you won’t be pregnant. You can get pregnant the first time you have sex, and there is no "safe" time to have sex without contraception. Unprotected sex carries the risk of sexually transmitted infections as well, so wherever you manage to get emergency contraception, make sure you follow up with proper advice about contraception and safer sex.

For further information about your sexual health please visit the Sex Worth Talking About website.

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