Hospitals across Sussex are receiving an average of seven complaints a day about their services.

Concerns include cancelled operations, delays in treatment, the care people got while in hospital and the attitude of staff.

Figures published by the NHS Health and Social Care Information Centre reveal the county's three main hospital trusts were sent 2,473 written complaints in the last year.

Although not all complaints were upheld, trust bosses said all of them were taken seriously and investigated.

Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton and Princess Royal Hospital in Haywards Heath among others, had the highest number of complaints – 1,338.

This was a 5% rise on the 1,270 it had the year before.

The Royal Sussex accident and emergency department came under serious pressure earlier this year, leading to bed shortages and long waits for patients in A&E.

The Argus also revealed in February how elderly patient Richard Reeve, 96, from Brighton, was sent home from the Royal Sussex with a cannula tube for a drip still stuck in his arm.

His angry family demanded an explanation and apology.

A trust spokesman said: “We actively seek feedback from patients and their relatives, both about what we have done right and about where we need to do better, and we use it to address any areas where improvements may need to be made.

“We try to make it as easy as possible for patients to tell us about their experience in our hospitals and we have a variety of ways in which they can give their feedback.

“We take all complaints extremely seriously and we try to resolve any issues a patient may have in a way that best suits them.”

Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust was sent 568 written complaints compared to 632 the year before while East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust fell from 670 to 567.

Cathy Stone, director of nursing and patient safety at Western Sussex Hospitals, said: “We are pleased to see that the number of written complaints we receive is falling – that fall is despite us making great efforts to encourage people to talk to us if there is anything about their care they are not happy with.

“All formal complaints are thoroughly investigated, because if we are getting something wrong it is essential that we know about it, and put it right.”

The actual number of complaints made to hospitals is believed to be higher as the figures do not include comments or concerns raised verbally.