MORE than a million pounds of extra money will be pumped into vital health services in Suffolk, it emerged today.Suffolk Primary Care Trust (PCT) has managed to save cash while staying on track to reduce its debt this financial year, so it has an additional £1.

MORE than a million pounds of extra money will be pumped into vital health services in Suffolk, it emerged today.

Suffolk Primary Care Trust (PCT) has managed to save cash while staying on track to reduce its debt this financial year, so it has an additional £1.3million to spend on a one-off boost to tackle key priorities before the end of March.

Just under £1million of the money will now be spent on reducing long waiting lists for hearing aids, pain procedures, orthodontic services, paediatric occupational therapy, and sexual health services at Ipswich Hospital.

Other money will go towards tackling healthcare-associated infections, such as MRSA, accelerating the rate of immunisation against diseases, studying the factors affecting the health of children and young people and helping encourage public and patient involvement in the PCT.

It signifies a turnaround in fortunes for the PCT, which started 2007/8 more than £30million in debt.

Julian Herbert, the PCT's director of finance and performance, said: “It has been quite a long journey but we are currently on track to be debt-free during 2008/9.

“We put aside 0.5per cent of our budget a year as contingency money and we haven't needed to spend it all, which is where the extra money has come from.

“We are getting to a position of strength where we can invest in services for the people of Suffolk. It is a massive boost to morale that we have this extra money.”

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