EX-health boss Ian Woolley has praised the emergency department at the Royal Blackburn Hospital after he was treated for abdominal pains.

The former chairman of Blackburn, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Hospital NHS Trust was referred there by his GP last Thursday and was so impressed that he sent a letter to the directors. He wrote: “Within minutes of arriving I was seen by Sister Elaine Holden who was excellent and who did some tests.

“After only a very short wait senior A&E consultant Mrs Georgina Robinson quickly and very efficiently assessed me.

“I then had to wait for blood test results and was then seen by a junior doctor who gave me a thorough examination. He decided I should also have intravenous paracetamol.

“The doctor decided I needed a chest X-ray and that was done with very little wait by a radiographer. At about 4pm I was discharged with antibiotics.

“It was a huge improvement on my last visit three years ago.”