THE daughter of an 85-year-old woman who died after suffering a stroke has praised ambulance staff in Warrington for their patience and care.

Katherine Mullen called her mum Sylvia's GP after she started feeling unwell.

After assessing her situation, he dialled 999 and an ambulance arrived from the station in Farrell Street within minutes.

The elderly Mrs Mullen, of Grafton Street, Bewsey, was reluctant to go to hospital and was terrified when faced with the prospect, but the two paramedics in the ambulance spent more than an hour coaxing and reassuring her that everything would be fine.

The paramedics eventually persuaded Mrs Mullen to go to hospital, although she sadly died there three days later.

Katherine said: "My mum was terrified about going into hospital. She'd heard and read things and it just made her really afraid.

"When the ambulance arrived, in next to no time, she wouldn't get in. As much as I tried to convince her that it was for the best, she wouldn't move.

"But the two paramedics on the ambulance, I think they were called Wally and Martin, were absolutely amazing.

"They have a tough job but they gave more than 100 per cent. They spent more than an hour with my mum, reassuring her and calming her down so they could get her into the ambulance.

"Had it not been for them, we would never have got her into hospital. They even kept coming back and checking up on her."

A spokesman for the ambulance service said: "This reflects the high standards of work our paramedics put into their job and how much each patient matters to them."