ONE of the region's two main ambulance trusts is to be inspected by an independent health watchdog.

The North-East Ambulance Service NHS Trust is due to be visited by an assessment team from the Commission for Health Improvement (CHI).

As part of the assessment CHI will also look at the nurse-led health helpline, NHS Direct (North-East) which answers thousands of calls every year.

Officially known as a clinical governance review, the assessment looks at how patients are treated, the level of information provided and the provision of up-to-date and well-supervised services