COMPLAINTS made against East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust have fallen below the national average, according to a new report.

Figures show 65 official complaints were made to the ombudsman about the trust in the last financial year – an improvement from 2013/14 where 81 investigations were launched.

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And just seven of the 65 investigations were fully or partly upheld, according to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.

This was out of a total of 244,557 ‘clinical episodes’ or patients treated.

David Tansley, East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust associate director for quality and safety, said: “This shows an improving picture evidenced by the fact that the number of enquiries received by the ombudsman fell 20 per cent in the last year and is now significantly below the national average.”

ELHT had 2.66 complaints per 10,000 clinical episodes and the average for England is 2.94.

The health watchdog said complaints probed in 2014/15 revealed that poor communication, errors in diagnosis and poor treatment were the main causes for complaints.

And ELHT had nine investigations that the ombudsman service didn’t uphold – an improvement from the previous year with five.

Mr Tansley added: “While the reduced number of ombudsman reports is evidence that the trust is responding to patients and families in a more timely and compassionate manner, we are not complacent and making further improvements in order that patients receive safe personal and effective care.”

Nationally, non-medical aspects of patient care were cited as a factor in almost half of all complaints investigated.