THE Royal Bolton Hospital has been shortlisted for a prestigious national award after medics saved the life of a little boy.

Finnley Hodnett had to be resuscitated following his birth in June last year at Wythenshawe Hospital in Manchester, due to a shortage of oxygen.

Once stabilised, he was transferred to the Royal Bolton Hospital, where he underwent life-saving treatment which was carried out using special cooling equipment at the hospital’s neonatal unit.

Finnley, who turned one last Saturday, has since made a full recovery and lives with his parents and sister at their home in Lymm, Cheshire.

As a result of its life-saving work, the hospital has been shortlisted under the ‘Value and Improvement in Medical Technology’ category of the Health Service Journal Value (HSJ) awards.

Dr Archana Mishra, Consultant Neonatologist at the Royal Bolton Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive care Unit, said: “We’ve had some notable successes and it makes me very proud of what we have been able to achieve for these babies and their parents.

“Sadly it doesn’t always work in every case, but parents have been grateful that we have all given their baby the best possible chance.”

Finnley’s mum Rachel, aged 40, stayed at the hospital for 10 days while her son received treatment and says she was given the best level of care by staff.

She added: “The work done by the hospital is absolutely priceless. They turned around a horrible situation and made it into a really good experience.

“The nurses did a fantastic job — they seemed to have a sixth sense of when I was going to break down.

“Every day we thank the unit and the treatment for potentially saving our little boy and preventing lifelong complications.”

Some babies are born with a shortage of oxygen, which can damage their brain and other organs.

But the equipment used at the Royal Bolton Hospital gives babies the best chance of survival and avoiding long-term harm.

The Royal Bolton Hospital has also been nominated for the HSJ award for Value and Improvement in Pathology Services.

This follows a scheme which has reduced the time and costs of key pathology tests.

The HSJ Awards ceremony will be held in Grosvenor House, London, on September 23.

The Bolton News has launched the Best of Health for Bolton campaign to urge people to rally behind the Royal Bolton in its fight to become a “super” hospital.

The Healthier Together plans could see the hospital become a specialist centre.

Consultation is expected to be approved by NHS England in July.

Under the bid, bosses at the Royal Bolton say they will invest in the accident and emergency department, as well as maternity, children and obstetrics.

It is the biggest change to the NHS in decades.

The public will be encouraged to decide where they want the five specialist centres to be based in Greater Manchester.