NORTH Essex patients were the unhappiest in the county last year about the way their local primary care trust handled complaints about treatment.

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman received 60 complaints about NHS North East Essex – the highest number of any health trust in Essex.

Four were eventually investigated by the ombudsman, but no action was taken in any of the cases.

North East Essex’s 60 complaints was almost twice the number the watchdog received about the county’s other two primary care trusts.

North Essex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, which provided mental health care, had the fewest complaints of any Essex trust.

A total of 26 cases involving the East of England Ambulance Services Trust were referred to the watchdog, while 48 complaints were received about the East of England Strategic Health Authority.

Patients of Colchester Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust had 41 cases referred to the ombudsman – the fewest of any acute hospital trust in Essex.

Mark Prentice, hospital trust spokesman, said: “We agree the NHS could do more to listen and learn from complaints made by patients, their families and carers.

“Dr Gordon Coutts, who started as our chief executive last month, has made complaints one of his initial five priorities because we need to improve our complaints processes and our responsiveness to feedback and ensure lessons are learned.”