THE long-awaited Darzi plan for hospital services has been praised by health campaigners.

The Save Our Hospital group, in Hartlepool, feared that proposals to reshape health services could result in the loss of their hospital.

But yesterday, leading London surgeon Professor Ara Darzi came up with a plan that would guarantee the future of general hospitals in Hartlepool and Stockton.

The Darzi plan will mean that the Hartlepool hospital will keep a consultant-led accident and emergency service, acute medicine and critical care. A Centre of Excellence in Women's and Children's Services would also be established at Hartlepool.

That would include consultant-led maternity, breast surgery and emergency paediatric medical treatment.

At the same time, the University Hospital of North Tees, in Stockton, would become the main centre for emergency surgery in the area.

North Tees would also become a centre for complex upper gastro-intestinal cancer services, relieving pressure on the James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough.

But while the Stockton hospital would continue to provide a full accident and emergency service and acute medicine, its consultant-led maternity unit would be downgraded to a 24-hour midwife-led maternity unit.

Prof Darzi rejected previous proposals to close Hartlepool and North Tees hospitals and build a new hospital between the two sites.

He also recommended that more Teesside patients should be sent to the affiliated Friarage Hospital, in Northallerton, to make use of spare capacity.

After a presentation to doctors, managers, councillors and campaigners at Hartlepool Civic Centre, Prof Darzi was impressed by the reaction to his plan. "I am delighted the feedback has been very positive. There is an atmosphere of realism and a feeling that it was equitable," he said.

Geoff Lilley, from Hartlepool, a founder member of the Save Our Hospital campaign, said: "It is a great victory for the ordinary men and women who signed our petition.

"They made a difference - their efforts have not been wasted."

David Flory, spokesman for County Durham and Tees Valley Strategic Health Authority, said they were grateful to Prof Darzi for providing the "blueprint" for the future.

A joint committee including all of the primary care and hospital trusts involved will now discuss the proposals in detail.

If they are approved, there will be a 12 week public consultation during the autumn.

Local authority scrutiny committees will make the final decision on whether the recommendations should be approved.