WOOLWICH: Queen Elizabeth Hospital A&E 'like scene from MASH' (From News Shopper)

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Queen Elizabeth Hospital A&E 'like scene from MASH'

3:27pm Tuesday 11th January 2011 in Bexley By Mark Chandler

Queen Elizabeth Hospital

QUESTIONS over the ability of an A&E department to cope have been raised after more patients slammed waiting times.

A woman with severe breathing difficulties was left at Queen Elizabeth Hospital for five hours without treatment while a man suffering a suspected heart attack likened the A&E department to a scene from Korean war movie MASH.

Their stories will increase concern over the the Woolwich hospital after Sidcup’s Queen Mary’s A&E department was shut down temporarily in November on safety grounds.

And John Watson from resident-run Bexley Council Monitoring Group has written to MP James Brokenshire urging him to invite Prime Minister David Cameron to visit Queen Elizabeth Hospital and see the problems. Brendan Dorey - “I could've dropped dead and they wouldn’t have given a toss.”

Brendan Dorey, 68, was taken by ambulance to the A&E on January with a suspected heart attack.

The Kidbrooke Way resident says he had to fight for a seat in the waiting room, took three hours to be seen by a nurse and a further two to be seen by a doctor.

While waiting he saw a man’s wound burst open, leaving blood on the floor which was not cleaned up for at least five minutes.

He said: “That hospital quite obviously can’t cope.

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“It was like a scene from MASH.

“I could've dropped dead and they wouldn’t have given a toss.”

Mr Dorey was told he had angina but refused to stay in for treatment He said: “I told them if I’m going to die I’d rather die at home.” Sawn Withy: "“They’re overrun”

Dawn Withy, of Worthing Rd, Foots Cray, is complaining to the NHS's Patient Advice and Liaison Services over her treatment.

Ms Withy, who has chest problems and suffered a heart attack last June, was referred to the hospital by her doctor last month with chronic breathing difficulties.

But when she turned up Ms Withy claims she was told to sit down in a packed-out waiting room while the tannoy system informed people there was a four-hour wait.

Two hours later she was called through but was left sitting on a chair with an oxygen nebuliser for a further three hours.

The 34-year-old said: “I was getting to the point where my chest was so tight I thought I might stop breathing.

“It’s not the staff’s fault - they’re overrun. But I told them someone’s going to die if this goes on.”

QEH was heavily criticised by patients A spokesman for South London Healthcare Trust said flu and the norovirus were contributing to large patient numbers but said patients were not waiting longer in A&E than expected.

He said: “"Following the recent temporary closure of the Queen Mary's A&E department, the trust has increased the beds, staffing and physical space to safely treat any increases in patients attending our other hospitals.”

The spokesman added that the hospital had an excellent record for cleanliness.

He said: “Although Queen Elizabeth’s average waiting time is approximately three hours, we would like to apologise to patients who have waited longer than this and appreciate the inconvenience and difficulty.

“We would also like to apologise to the two patients whose cases that you have brought to our attention and are investigating both of these as a matter of urgency. The treatment that you have reported to us is clearly not acceptable. “

Comments(22)

mpeaple275 says...
3:53pm Tue 11 Jan 11

but yet it is not just QE i whent to pru last week with my neighbur in am ambulance in a very bad way and we was left in the corridor with the paramedics for over 3 hours now thats appauling tieing up the ambulance for that amount off let being left in corridor at one point that had up to 5 ambluances which is ten paramedics waiting at the pru for up to 2 hours no wonder it took half hour for the amblunace to get to us in the first place when i asked how comes we came here insted off QE we was told it was because QE was much busy then pru and the wait was a lot longer
and then alot off people have seen to of forgot about darnth hospital i whent there agen with the same neighbur in a ambulance with my neigbur doubled over in pain we got there and got and was only waiting 5 mins and was on a bed but we took the last bed and the QUES started forming and people where being left out in ambulances for up to an hour as the had room as the beds and corridors where all full then when i spoke to an a&e about what was going on out side he turned round and told me that this quited as last week the staff had been triage patients out in ambulances all i can say is darnth hospital is the best hospital out off the 3 the best staffed best equiped and best orgernised may thats because its run under a dff nhs trust to the pru and QE but the botton line is QM A&E needs to be reopened and thats that but unless we all get togther and i mean every one all paitents relitives friends doctors nurse's paramedics and any one els then we might just might get some where but untill then noththing will be done and every will just keep moaning at the way the hospital are not copeing !!!!