NORTH Durham GPs now have specialist help in dealing with patients with mental health problems.

Psychology graduates Rachael Baskaran, Clair Domeney and Barbara Reid have been taken on by Dur-ham and Chester-le-Street Primary Care Trust.

As well as helping doctors, they will give therapies for people with mild to moderate mental problems and organise self-help therapies.

Since starting with the trust, they have helped launch an interactive computer system, called Beating the Blues, which helps reduce patients' anxiety and depression, at Chester-le-Street Health Centre.

Brian Key, the trust's performance modernisation director, said helping people with mental health problems at surgeries and health centres was a key issue.

He said: "Research has shown that mental health problems are implicated in up to one of four GP consultations, and that the majority of people with mental health problems are being treated in primary care.

"Therefore, it is very important that our GPs are given the specialist advice and support they need when caring for people with mental health problems."

Ms Baskaran said the Beating the Blues system "works for many people with depression and anxiety by teaching practical, lifelong skills to help them feel better and stay better".

She said patients had given positive feedback on the system.