A MODERN scanner has dramatically cut waiting lists and times for patients in Darlington.

About £600,000 has been spent on a major upgrade and refurbishment of the Darlington MRI department, vastly improving services for patients at Darlington Memorial Hospital.

The upgrade includes a new diagnostic imaging examination, which has reduced waiting lists for cardiac patients at the hospital and cut the time patients spend in hospital from six hours or more to an average of two hours.

The work also means patients from Darlington, and its surrounding villages, who would normally have to travel to Middlesbrough or Newcastle for cardiac examinations, can now be treated at their local hospital.

Lodestone Patient Care work with the hospital to provide and run the scanning service.

John Saxby, chief executive of County Durham and Darlington Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "We are now able to offer a first class MRI service at Darlington Memorial Hospital.

"People who are referred for MRI scans here are generally seen within a matter of days.

"We have been working with Lodestone for almost a decade now and are delighted with the service they provide.

"The new scanner will offer an enhanced service to people from the area who need an MRI."

As well as cutting times, the new MRI scan has other important benefits as it is non-invasive and has no radiation, which minimises side effects.

In addition to the recent MRI upgrade, the image quality of the scans has improved significantly, resulting in more detailed images in a much shorter time frame.

Michael Barker, Lodestone Patient Care's marketing director, said: "Darlington MRI, and indeed, the staff at Lodestone Patient Care are very excited about this venture.

"It places us at the forefront of technology and medical innovations in keeping with our constant strive to improve patient care."

The upgrade has also led to an increase in the range of examinations available at the memorial hospital, which will now include abdominal and body imaging.

This will allow cancer staging and vascular imaging, which was not previously possible, as well as offering the latest technology for the assessment of chest pain and the prediction of recovery after a heart attack.

Darlington MRI currently perform 320 examinations per month.