STRUCTURAL work on a new hospital should be completed early in the New Year.
Work on the long-awaited Sedgefield Community Hospital, County Durham, began at the end of July after Prime Minister Tony Blair cut the first turf.
The external structure has been taking shape rapidly and is expected to be complete at the end of January with the laying of the final slate.
Work will then continue on developing the inside of the building, and it is hoped the first patients will move in by the end of July.
The £8m, 42-bed hospital will replace wards which date back to the Second World War.
The building will contain an extended x-ray department with an ultrasound facility, on top of services already provided at the existing community hospital.
There will be 26 care beds for the elderly and 16 beds for mental health patients, as well as two day hospitals for elderly patients.
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