PEOPLE with cataracts should get speedier treatment thanks to a £242,000 cash boost for hospitals in south Durham and North Yorkshire.
The funding will streamline services at Darlington Memorial Hospital, Bishop Auckland General, the Friarage at Northallerton, the Richardson Hospital in Barnard Castle and Richmond Friary Hospital, as well as Thirsk Health Centre.
The cash will help cut waiting times and reduce the number of visits patients have to make.
Opticians will be able to refer people directly to a hospital consultant instead of first sending them to their GP.
Patients will be assessed at their first appointment and be able to agree a date for surgery there and then.
Waiting times for cataract surgery will be reduced even further by increasing the number of operations, investing in new equipment and enabling more patients to go home on the day they have surgery instead of staying in overnight.
The funding, which is going to the South Durham Health Care NHS Trust and Northallerton Health Services NHS Trust, is part of a £20m Government investment in cataract services across the country.
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