Eamonn Holmes has told of the "excruciating pain" that made him rush to A&E in the Ulster Hospital.
The TV presenter had to get an ambulance after suffering the pain the middle of the night - knowing "something wasn't right".
He then ended up in the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast.
READ MORE: Eamonn Holmes returns to work after health issue leaving fans 'thrilled'
The North Belfast man has praised those who helped him during his hospital visit, describing the health workers as "angels".
In his first column in the Express, Eamonn said: "I've managed to avoid them for 62 years…but last week I ended up in the back of an ambulance for the first time. My destination was Belfast’s Royal Victoria Hospital Spinal Injuries unit via the A&E unit at the city’s Ulster Hospital. It's not an experience I wish to repeat anytime soon - not least because ambulances seem to be vehicles devoid of any suspension. But there ends any criticism I have of our amazing NHS.
"I’d ended up in hospital after waking up in the middle of the night suffering excruciating pain.
"I immediately knew something wasn’t right.
"The pain, it would transpire, was from two prolapsed discs in my back and after an MRI scan at 2am in the morning, I was prepped to go in for an emergency operation at 8am.
"Then, shortly before I was about to be wheeled down and go under the knife, a surgeon decided it wasn’t the right course of action.
"The pain I was in meant that I was mentally ready for the operation. But what I wasn't ready for was the comprehensive care package I was receiving from the doctors and nurses by my bedside.
"At times I had to ask myself if this was the same NHS I’d heard described on TV as broken, inefficient, wasteful and not fit for purpose.
"From where I was lying nothing could be further from the truth. It quickly became clear that one of the reasons I hadn’t been rushed into surgery was due to the complexity of back conditions and the many effects and consequences of spinal injuries."
He added: "However my education was quick - and my treatment became quicker and comprehensive.
"I ended up having my whole health diagnosed. It was a one-stop-shop all under one roof. This wasn't like the private sector I was used to in London, where nothing seems joined up and no one is talking to ànyone else: except the 'Invoicing Department'.
"Around me were patients with bad injuries, often in tremendous pain. The screams, day and night, bore testament to that. Yet there was always a doctor, nurse or nursing auxiliary close by to hold a hand, apply pain relief or empty a bedpan.
"As the days passed it was clear none of them, not a single one, were doing it for the money. No, they were proud of their jobs, often wanting to progress up the career ladder and they saw what they were doing as a vocation.
"It would have been easy to have felt sorry for myself in the hospital. After all, live TV is my drug. It’s what gets me out of bed at 3.30am in the morning."
Eamonn was due to be at Buckingham Palace alongside co-host Isabel Webster to cover part of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Celebrations and later at the Jubilee Pageant with wife Ruth Langsford.
He spent the whole time in hospital, but said "being looked after by the doctors and nurses was a privilege".
Eamonn added: "The 20 or 30 I met during my stay repeatedly insisted they were “just doing their jobs”.
"My carers were from Northern Ireland, the Philippines and Africa.
"They were underpaid and understaffed..."
He continued: "Just like the NHS my back may never be fixed. But because of the NHS it's holding up nicely."
The father-of-four said he is "delighted" to be back at work and thanked everyone who sent him messages over the past week.
"They have my respect, admiration and thanks. But right now my heart belongs to the NHS - and the Angels who got me back on my feet again. Thank you," Eamonn said.
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