A CONSULTANT surgeon who was charged with the manslaughter of a patient is expected to return to work in the new year.

The charges against John Gordon Stephen were dropped a month after he was accused of killing Alan Dunn, who had stabbed himself in the chest.

Mr Stephen was not suspended but voluntarily withdrew from emergency work after his arrest at the beginning of this year.

He was formally charged with manslaughter on September 1, but the charges were dropped a month later.

At the time, the Crown Prosecution Service said that, in the light of a further report, there was not enough evidence to continue the case.

Yesterday, a spokesman for the County Durham and Darlington Acute Hospitals Trust signalled the surgeon's return to work.

He said: "The trust is agreeing with Mr Stephen the arrangements for a structured return to work next year following his long absence from clinical activity."

Mr Stephen was the consultant on call at Darlington Memorial Hospital when Mr Dunn, of Barrington Terrace, Ferryhill, County Durham, was admitted on December 10, last year.

Mr Dunn, a 60-year-old hospital porter who suffered from depression, had stabbed himself in the chest in an apparent suicide attempt.

His wife, Coleen, 59, called an ambulance and he arrived at Darlington Memorial Hospital at 8.13am.

The former miner died moments after the knife was removed by Mr Stephen, shortly after 9am.

There has been an increase in manslaughter charges brought against doctors in recent years - 17 in the 1990s compared with two in the 1970s and 1980s.

The decision to charge the 62-year-old consultant was criticised by his supporters.

Dr Michael Devlin, of the Medical Defence Union, said many more doctors were investigated than were prosecuted and even fewer are convicted.

Legal experts questioned whether criminal proceedings in the case moved too quickly. The case against Mr Stephen was dropped shortly after his first Crown Court appearance - before he had entered a plea.

At the time, Mr Stephen, who lives in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, said the decision was a "huge relief".

Mr Dunn's eldest son, Lee, said he accepted Mr Stephen was acting to save his father's life, but the case has left many unanswered questions.

An inquest into Mr Dunn's death opened and adjourned at Crook coroner's office on January 13. The verdict is as yet unknown.

Mr Stephen was unavailable for comment last night.