The chief executive of the East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust has stepped down following a period of ill health.

Dorothy Hosein will be replaced by medical director and deputy chief executive, Dr Tom Davis.

The service was put into special measures in October after The Care Quality Commision (CQC) found a 'negative culture' and poor leadership.

The trust said it was "taking urgent action to address challenges".

The CQC visited the trust where a string of failures were highlights, including how the trust acted following allegations of serious offences made against employees.

This included 12 breaches of legal requirements which they said "must be put right."

Dorothy joined the Trust as interim chief executive in 2018, and was appointed to the role permanently in 2019.

She said she was 'hugely proud' of the work the Trust had achieved.

She said: “It is with great sadness that I have decided to relinquish my post to focus on my wellbeing - staff are at the heart of this service, and it has been an absolute pleasure working with employees of EEAST.

“I am hugely proud and thankful for the work we have done together to improve patient safety and experience, and I wish every success for EEAST in the future.”

Nicola Scrivings, Chair of EEAST said: “On behalf of the Board of EEAST, I would like to thank Dorothy for her leadership which has enabled the Trust to deliver significant improvements to its performance during her time as chief executive.

"Under her leadership, the Trust moved from being the worst performing ambulance trust in England to one that regularly met and even outperformed national standards.

"Staff recruitment and finances also improved, and new approaches to leadership meant the Trust was as well positioned as possible to meet the challenges of COVID-19.

"We send Dorothy our warmest wishes for the future."