INTERNET users in York, North and East Yorkshire have the chance to influence their local health services by taking part in an on-line survey.

The survey was launched this week by North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire Strategic Health Authority to test public opinion on services in its area and shape how the services will be delivered in the future.

The public's understanding of the Norwalk virus is also being explored during the survey, in order to inform people about the effects of the virus, which can cause the closure of hospital wards if the virus is brought on to the wards by visitors or patients.

By logging on to the website at www.yougov.com/neynl/health, local people can access the survey and tell health chiefs what they think of the local health guide, Your Guide To Local Services, which was being sent to all households this week.

Questions about how people want to choose their treatment in the future are also included in the survey.

More choice will be available for patients as to when and where they are treated, and the questionnaire aims to feed back vital information on how this can be delivered.

Those who complete the survey, which takes as little as five minutes, will be entered in a prize draw for £500.

David Johnson, chief executive of the authority, said: "We hope that the survey will not only provide useful feedback on the work that we do, but will encourage people to get more involved in the delivery of their local health service. Finding out what people think about their local health service is vital if we are to improve patient care."

The deadline for the survey is mid-December.

Updated: 10:17 Saturday, September 13, 2003