HOSPITAL improvements costing more than £1m have been introduced in Bishop Auckland and Darlington in the past year, health chiefs announced last night.

Waiting times have been significantly reduced through changes to the way services are provided, according to the South Durham NHS Trust.

Ninety per cent of patients are seen within 13 weeks and no patient waits longer than 26 weeks for an outpatient appointment at Darlington Memorial and Bishop Auckland General hospitals.

Patients needing smaller operations, such as vasectomies or the removal of small cysts, can now be treated by a GP and do not have to wait to see a hospital specialist.

In addition to redesigning the service, more than £100,000 has been spent on improving cancer services at the hospitals, with two specialist lung cancer nurses being recruited.

A similar amount has been spent on developments to emergency care, including setting up a specialist team at at Bishop Auckland Hospital.

The hospital is working closely with social services to ensure that safe and effective arrangements exist for discharged patients.

Ann Farrar, head of planning and service development for the trust, said: "If we are to continue to meet our increasingly challenging targets to reduce waiting times and improve access to services, we must continue to develop smarter processes.

"In many cases, this means totally redesigning how a service is provided so that patients receive quicker and more convenient treatment."

She said the hospitals were working closely with the primary care service, which co-ordinates care in the community.

"The work we have undertaken to date with our colleagues in primary care has reaped enormous benefits for patients.

"We will continue to work with the newly-formed primary care trusts to further improve our services," she said.

Part of a new, privately financed £67m hospital is opening today in Bishop Auckland.

Last week, it was revealed that the under-pressure North Durham health trust was in talks with South Durham's health trust to use spare capacity at Bishop Auckland when it opens.

The two trusts are due to merge, allowing closer working between Durham, Bishop Auckland and Darlington.