SPINAL and brain surgery patients can now have follow up appointments with their consultants from the comfort of their own living room.

Royal Preston Hospital, part of Lancashire Teaching Hospitals Trust, which is a specialist treatment centre for patients across the county with spinal and brain conditions, has set up a pioneering telephone clinic service.

Now patients from East Lancashire can save more than an hour and the hassle of arranging transport to the hospital thanks to the new initiative.

Patients who have had problems or complications following surgery will still have to see their consultant in person but those without simply wait by the phone at a prearranged time.

John Manley, 62, of Grasmere Street, Burnley was one of the first people to try the new system.

He had surgery on his spine in February to ease arthritic pain and had his first check up on the telephone.

He said: "They told me about the new system when I was coming up to my first appointment.

"I think it is a lot better than having to go to Preston and then possibly waiting there for an hour before being seen.

"My consultant phoned me at a set time and we were on for about 15 minutes, I could still ask him anything I wanted to do -- it could have been about two hours if I'd had to go to Preston and back.

"My next appointment is in three months and I will definitely do it this way again."

Lancashire Teaching Hospitals is one of only three trusts in the country to have been selected as a pilot site for creativity and innovation in the NHS.

The telephone clinic has been introduced as part of it's attempts to introduce business style thinking into the way services are run as well as benefiting patients.

Mr Aprajay Golash, neurosurgery consultant, said: "This is a radical departure from the way hospital clinics have traditionally been run.

"We hope it will lead to better communication between medical staff and patients, be far more convenient and will free time for consultants to deal with more complex cases. It could also lead to shorter waiting times.

"Patients can rest assured that if they have any problems they will be seen by a consultant and those who prefer to see someone face to face can still attend the clinic."