A HOSPITAL trust has announced it is ending paper-based patient health records.

County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust has invested in an electronic system to document patients’ details, which will be rolled out next year.

The system will store health records as images, which can be used by staff across the NHS.

Andrew Jennings, Orthopaedic Consultant at County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust, said: “This is an extremely important development and means we will have key information immediately to improve patient care.

“It will also help support a reduction in any appointments or operations which may need to be cancelled because notes are not available.”