PATIENTS in Morecambe Bay receive some of the very best hospital accident and emergency services in the country, two new independent surveys have found.

The surveys of 140,000 patients across England, who were asked to rate their experiences, showed that hospitals in Kendal, Lancaster and Barrow were thought of extremely highly.

When it came to the percentage of people seen, treated and admitted, or discharged within four hours, Morecambe Bay Hospitals NHS Trust was assessed as the best in the country by its patients.

The trust was equal first in the survey for the percentage of people who had their treatment or condition explained in a way that they could understand.

For the percentage of patients waiting fewer than 15 minutes before being seen by a doctor or nurse, Morecambe Bay was ranked second in the country.

The trust was in fifth position when it came to the percentage of patients being examined by a doctor or nurse in under one hour; and in equal fifth position for the percentage of people who described the A&E departments as "very clean".

The figures, which cover services provided at Kendal's Westmorland General Hospital, the Royal Lancaster Infirmary and Furness General Hospital in Barrow, were announced as the trust was awarded £100,000 after consistently meeting a national target to see 97 per cent of patients in A&E departments within four hours.

The latest surveys were carried out in the summer and autumn of 2004 by the independent health watchdog the Healthcare Commission.

The commission asked patients to rate their experiences of 153 health trusts.

Morecambe Bay Hospitals NHS Trust chief executive Ian Cumming said he was particularly pleased because the surveys were completely independent of the trust.

"We have absolutely no control (on the surveys) at all," he said.

"I think it's tribute to the staff who work here because it's not about systems and processes, it's about how people are treated when they turn up at A&E."

Clinical director of A&E services Dr Ray McGlone said that having such patient feedback helped to boost staff morale.

The information will also be used by the Healthcare Commission when it formulates its star ratings for 2005. Morecambe Bay is hoping to regain its top three star rating, after receiving two stars last year.