Private healthcare managers have back-tracked on plans to adopt Lord Nuffield's name for their hospitals, after the Oxford Mail highlighted the confusion it would cause.

Critics complained that the Nuffield Hospital Group's proposals to call its new Headington development the Nuffield Hospital Oxford would clash with the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre -- just one mile away.

And the group was set to create more by renaming the Acland Hospital in Banbury Road the Nuffield Hospital Acland.

Following complaints from the NOC and Oxford Mail readers, the Nuffield Hospitals Group said that no final decisions had been made.

Last month, managers told the Oxford Mail they would not change their minds, despite recognising the possible confusion they could cause.

They said the naming process was part of a re-branding exercise across all their 44 UK sites.

But in a new statement, they said they were still discussing a number of possible names for both their Oxford hospitals. The statement said: "We recognise there is local interest in the naming of our new hospital in Oxford.

"While the Nuffield Hospitals Group is keen to ensure a level of consistency in the naming of its 44 hospitals nationwide, it is always mindful to consider local factors before reaching any final decision. "The future of the existing Acland Hospital after the opening of the new hospital is also currently being discussed and, again, no decisions have been made.

"We do not want to cause confusion within Oxford and we will make every attempt to ensure that any names chosen for the new or for the existing hospital, should it remain open, will reflect this."

Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre chief executive Ed Macalister-Smith, who wrote to the Nuffield Hospitals Group to complain, welcomed its change of heart.

He said: "We know that residents in Headington and the surrounding area believe it would be wrong to call another

city hospital after Lord Nuffield -- let alone two.

"It's great that they are reconsidering and putting patients' interests before anything else."

Terry Pratley, of School Road, Finstock, welcomed the possible change of heart after earlier criticising the latest Nuffield name move.

Mr Pratley, an Oxford United fan, said: "I'd still prefer them to call it The Manor to keep the name alive, and I do hope they will reconsider it, if only to stop people from getting confused, especially at what may be a stressful time."

Norman Stimpson, of High Street, Drayton near Abingdon, said he was delighted by the rethink and hoped that his suggestion of calling the new hospital, the William Morris -- Lord Nuffield's real name -- would find favour.