SOUTH Cleveland Hospital is to be renamed the James Cook University Hospital, in honour of one of the region's most famous sons.

The name change will mark a £139m revamp of the site in Marton Road, Middlesbrough, into an ultra-modern super-hospital.

It will also recognise the growing links between the NHS hospital and the surrounding universities of Teesside, Durham and Newcastle.

As well as being one of the legends of global exploration, Cook pioneered a more healthy diet for sailors, by insisting that they eat limes, to combat scurvy.

But his main link with the 1,000-bed hospital which will bear his name is the fact that he was born in nearby Marton, once a tiny village and now a suburb of Middlesbrough.

Hospital bosses considered calling the site the Captain Cook University Hospital, but decided on James Cook after concerns were raised that this could lead to confusion with the Captain Cook tourist attractions in the area.

The new name is to be unveiled on Thursday, April 26, by Lord Crathorne, the Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire.

Lord Crathorne, who farms in the area, is an international authority on the life of Cook and chairman of the Captain Cook Museum trustees.

Two years ago, the then Health Secretary Frank Dobson unveiled the hospital's expansion plans during a visit to the North-East.

At the time, South Tees Hospitals NHS Trust chief executive Bill Murray said the new hospital would be particularly welcoming to patients and visitors because of a design which meant that wards, departments and offices would open off a giant, sunlit atrium.

When it opens in March 2003, the new single-site unit will allow the closure and disposal of outdated facilities at Middlesbrough General Hospital and North Riding Infirmary.

Recently, the plans for the new hospital were changed to incorporate an expanded cardiothoracic unit, to enable surgeons to meet the increasing demand for heart bypasses.

John Foster, chairman of the South Tees trust, said: "The construction work for the single-site development is progressing well.

"We look forward very much to having all our services integrated, in order to provide an even better service for our patients."