We became a Foundation Trust on 01 February 2007 and provide secondary hospital care from three main sites; University Hospital of North Durham, Darlington Memorial Hospital and Bishop Auckland General Hospital.
The Trust also runs community hospitals in Shotley Bridge and Chester-le-Street and provides outpatient, community and outreach services from several other sites. We offer care in modern, clean facilities which include two cardiac suites at Durham and Darlington and an NHS Treatment Centre at Bishop Auckland for routine surgery.
The Trust has around 4,700 whole time equivalent staff and 1,200 beds. We provide secondary care district general hospital services to a population of around 500,000 in County Durham and Darlington, and into North Yorkshire, with sub-regional services reaching into the South of Tyne area, serving a population of 1.2m.
In 2008, the Trust was named one of the CHKS 40 Top Hospitals for the first time since it was established in 2002.
Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALS)
- PALS tel:
- 0191 333 2323
- PALS email:
- fiona.day@cddft.nhs.uk
You can talk to PALS who provide confidential advice and support to patients, families and their carers, and can provide information on the NHS and health related matters.
Signing Service
The Trust can arrange for face-to-face or telephone translation services for non-English speaking patients. British Sign Language and Lip Speaking translation can also be arranged for the deaf and hard of hearing
Local involvement networks (LINks)
- Lead: Helen Rutter
- Tel: 01325 743087
- Local involvement networks (LINks) allows patients to be involved in decisions about their care and lets communities be involved in their local health service.
