HEALTH bosses are to open a second health centre for refugees in the region.

They believe the new GP surgery for refugees will help lift the burden on main stream doctors' surgeries.

The centre, known as the Arrival Practice, will be open-ed in Stockton on Thursday.

Officials said the medical facility,which will be equipped to deal with a wide range of medical complaints, would play an important role in helping refugees hoping to settle in the region.

It would help to free up the consultation rooms of Teesside GPs, they said.

The practice will cost about £200,000 to run, £160,000 coming from a national fund and the rest made up out of the North Tees NHS Primary Care Trust's (PCT) staff budget.

When the practice opens, it will follow in the footsteps of the Haven practice, launched in Middlesbrough in October.

Both practices are geared to meet the often complex health needs of newly-arrived refugees. Refugees are expected to be transfer to ordinary GPs after six months.

The Arrival Practice's GP, Dr Paul Williams, has worked extensively with refugees as a volunteer.

He said: "Up to 30 per cent of refugees who come to this country have been tortured, imprisoned or raped. Almost all of them have been through a tough time. Nobody decides to leave their country of origin lightly."

Dr Williams described the decision by North Tees Primary Care Trust to set up the surgery as a "win-win solution".

"This way, the refugees will get the health care they need and the people of Stockton should be able to see their GPs more easily," he said.

Dr Williams heads a six-strong team, which includes a practice manager, two part-time specialist nurses and reception staff.

North Tees PCT chief executive Christine Willis said: "It will be of immense help to other doctors in North Tees whose patients will also ultimately benefit from the reduction in workload that this practice will bring."

It is hoped that it will also help to attract newly qualified GPs.