ELEVENTH hour moves are under way to try to save an east Durham doctor's surgery from closure.

But the attempt to stop the closure of a branch surgery in the village of Haswell was last night looking increasingly unlikely to succeed.

Dr Mohammad Quasim will tomorrow seek permission from County Durham and Darlington Health Authority to close his surgery, held twice a week in Haswell's community centre.

In his application for closure, Dr Quasim said the centre's inadequate facilities were preventing him from "providing proper medical care" to his 200-plus patients.

Dr Quasim, whose main surgery is at South Hetton, said that he would be willing to continue practising in the village if suitable premises were found.

The parish council and local health forum both publicly support efforts to save the surgery.

Councillor Roy Todd, chairman of both, said the two organisations were "greatly concerned".

He conceded that facilities at the community centre were basic, but said the council believed they could be improved.

The forum described the proposal as a "a great blow to the community and an inconvenience to patients".

Dr Quasim's offer to treat Haswell patients at his South Hetton surgery would present travel difficulties, particularly for the elderly, said Coun Todd.

He said last-ditch moves were being made to explore the more feasible alternative of Dr Quasim sharing the purpose-built surgery established by two other practices in the village.

But last night, Dr Richard Abbott, whose practice joined forces with another local doctor to fund the £116,000 surgery, said his group had looked at the possibility of sharing with Dr Quasim, but a shortage of space and other timetabling problems meant an agreement "could not be reached''.

Dr Abbott did confirm, however, that his group would be willing to accept any of Dr Quasim's Haswell patients who did not want to travel to South Hetton.