An 82-year-old woman spent 18 “hellish” hours in a hospital corridor that resembled a "war zone" as she waited for treatment, her daughter has said. Yvonne Jones, from Pantymwyn near Mold, Flintshire, was found to have broken her neck but despite being in pain she was given just two Co-codamol tablets during 11 hours wait for scans at Wrexham Maelor Hospital on June 5. Her daughter, Michele Bradford claimed it was like a “war zone” with patients lying on trolleys and stretchers and some crying out in pain.
“As Mum was lying on her back, forced to stare at the ceiling, she couldn’t see any of this,” said Michelle, from Holyhead, Anglesey. “But she could hear all the shouting and wailing.” Betsi Cadwaladr, the North Wales health board, has apologised to the patient and her daughter.
Deputy medical director Dr Jim McGuigan said patients were always treated in order of clinical need. This can mean long waits if more critical cases arrive at the same time. Mrs Jones injured herself after falling in the garden and her daughter took her to the hospital.
“When we arrived at 9.30pm, it was Armageddon in there,” she said. “It was horrific – more than 100 people were waiting in A&E.
” After a 90-minute wait, Mrs Jones was triaged. “The nurse was lovely – she said mum’s neck needed to be stabilised straight away,” said Michele. “So she was put on a trolley and wheeled to the A&E corridor.
But her neck wasn’t stabilised.” At 11.25pm, they said they.
