PATIENTS from Libya being treated privately at an Oxford hospital are helping to boost NHS funds.
The Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust has struck a deal with the North African country's government to care for its citizens at its three hospitals.
So far, two people have visited the John Radcliffe Hospital in Headington for knee replacements, which cost £8,000 on the NHS.
Trust chief executive Trevor Campbell Davis said he hoped the arrangement would grow in years to come.
He added: "The important thing is that everything we do in terms of income development will not be allowed to destabilise our services for NHS patients. In fact, it will have just the opposite effect, helping us have a good financial base."
The ORH's partnership with Libya came after officials from the trust joined the Duke of York on a visit to the country last November.
The trust is aiming to earn £1m from private work in the current financial year, which ends in April.
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