A TREATMENT centre which aims to deal with thousands of operations a year officially opens on Monday.

The aim of the centre in Haywards Heath is to cut waiting times for people needing non-emergency orthopaedic surgery such as hip replacements.

It is based in the grounds of Princess Royal Hospital and run on behalf of the NHS by private company Mercury Health.

The scheme has been paid for through a Private Finance Initiative at a cost of more than £10 million and has raised concerns among many about the "creeping privatisation" of the NHS.

It will expand the treatment previously provided by Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs the Princess Royal and the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton among others.

Health officials say it will mean more patients can be seen quickly as the centre is dedicated for orthopaedic use only and the issues affecting ordinary hospitals such as bed-blocking or high numbers of emergency cases coming in will not be a factor.

Patients throughout the trust's catchment area already go to the Princess Royal for non-urgent surgery as only emergency cases are dealt with in Brighton.

The centre will cover both routine surgery, such as knee and hip joint replacements, and also procedures such as arthroscopy, which uses keyhole surgery to investigate joints.

The opening of the centre means that for the first time there will be one specialist centre for all orthopaedic surgery, with the adjacent Princess Royal available if patients have more complex anaesthetic needs.

Conditions Currently, one-in-five NHS patients needing orthopaedic treatment has to have more costly surgery elsewhere, such as a private hospital, because there is not enough capacity within the trust.

This will now be soaked-up by the new centre. It is expected the centre will perform 5,300 operations a year, with the Princess Royal providing a further 700.

The majority of patients attending the 36-bed centre will have day surgery, allowing them to return home without staying overnight.

The centre is one of a growing number of sites where NHS and independent healthcare companies work together to provide a free service to all NHS patients.

Mercury Health are managing similar schemes across the South of England on behalf of the NHS.

Medical director Robin Turner said: "This new centre is great news for NHS patients in Mid and East Sussex. It will mean shorter waiting times."

The centre is funded by primary care trusts in Brighton and Hove, Mid Sussex and Sussex Downs and Weald.

Under the contract the centre will be managed and run by Mercury Health for the first five years, with the NHS monitoring performance and quality of care.

After five years the NHS can decide whether to take over ownership or leave it in independent hands.

But Paul Evans from the Brighton-based NHS Support Federation is uneasy about the private sector getting involved.

He said: "Nobody is against a scheme which means patients will get their treatment more quickly. That is not the issue.

"What makes me uneasy is this investment being made into a private company to run a service the NHS should be doing.

"Build a dedicated specialist centre by all means but it should be the NHS that runs it."