A man with a heart condition no longer has to trek to hospital for check-ups thanks to a new care programme.

John Laville from Hartshead suffers with from atrial fibrillation where his heart’s rhythm becomes disrupted for a period of time.

The disruption causes him to fall ill, and if not treated quickly, can have serious consequences for his health.

In the past, when John experienced symptoms he had to go to hospital to have his heart checked using an electrocardiogram (ECG).

Now, thanks to a move to bring more care closer to home, he is now able to have blood tests and an ECG in his GP practice.

John has already used the service and the results of the test were available within a few hours, thankfully confirming that he was fit and well.

“I was impressed by the thoroughness of my GP practice,” he said.

“What better can you have; it’s easy, local and I don’t have to travel to hospital for these tests.

“It was a great use of technology and resources; a very good experience.”

North Kirklees patients are some of the first to get services out of hospital thanks to the Care Closer To Home project.

Health chiefs in Huddersfield and Calderdale are currently working on plans for a similar project.

A spokesperson for North Kirklees CCG said: “By increasing the range of services available close to home, we can support more people to live independently and reduce the need for a hospital admission.

“For those who do need to spend time in hospital, better community services will help to speed up the discharge process too.”