HEALTH managers in Darlington are hoping a new £1m walk-in medical centre will relieve pressure on the Memorial Hospital's casualty department.
The centre, due to open in January, will take up the ground floor of Darlington Primary Care Trust's HQ at Dr Piper House, King Street.
It will be open for treatment and advice for minor injuries and ailments throughout the year.
Trust chief executive Colin Morris said a publicity campaign would be launched in the run-up to the January 21 opening date, encouraging people not to inundate the casualty department if their troubles are minor.
Addressing councillors in Darlington this week, he said: "We have a trend of people using A and E as the 12th GP practice in Darlington - we have to do something about that. We believe a lot of people attending A and E could be diverted and go to the centre."
Mr Morris made his comments as he presented the trust's annual report to the town's social affairs and health scrutiny committee.
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