A children's clinic within a new £1.4m eye unit has opened at Epsom Hospital as services are relocated there from a hospital site in Sutton.

Eye care services, including emergency services for eye casualties, are also set to move to St Helier Hospital, where another unit will open in June.

The relocations will be completed in July, leaving only a chronic fatigue service, a centre of pain eduction, phlebotomy and a staff nursery at Sutton Hospital.

Jackie Sullivan, chief operating officer at Epsom and St Helier hospitals trust, said Sutton Hospital will retain emergency services for eye casualties and eye clinics during daytime on weekdays for a few months.

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Ms Sullivan said: "We are very excited about the development of both of our new eye units and we are pleased to be offering fantastic new facilities for our patients at Epsom with immediate effect and additionally from St Helier Hospital from the end of June.

"Both of the units will be a huge improvement in terms of the environment for our patients and will also allow care to be delivered closer to home for many patients."

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The Epsom unit, which received £130,000 from the Friends of Epsom Hospital, has already opened its children’s eye clinic. Other clinics for acute eye conditions will move there over coming weeks.

Consultant eye doctor Jane Leitch said: "We are extremely proud of our new eye unit and are delighted to have opened up our first clinics to such a vibrant group of younger patients."

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