A NEWPORT woman has spoken of her frustration after her grandmother waited almost 16 hours to be seen for a possible pneumonia infection at the Royal Gwent Hospital – only to be told she had to leave because there was no bed space.

Laura Thomas was with her 76-year-old grandmother Patricia Cox when she was taken into the Medical Assessment Unit at the Royal Gwent Hospital at around 3.30pm on Monday, March 7.

According to Ms Thomas, it was not until 7am the next morning that her grandmother was seen by a doctor – who reportedly wanted to admit Ms Cox for two nights, but bed space at the hospital was in short supply.

South Wales Argus: Patricia Cox was sent to the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport with suspected pneumonia. Patricia Cox was sent to the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport with suspected pneumonia.

However, three hours later, Ms Thomas says a consultant sent them home with antibiotics for Ms Cox.

“My grandmother went to see her GP with suspected pneumonia,” Ms Thomas told the Argus.

“We went there at around half past three on the Monday afternoon, but we weren’t seen until seven o’clock the next morning.

“The doctor who saw my grandmother said that he wanted to admit her for two nights and put her on intravenous antibiotics and fluids – but he said that there were no hospital beds available.

“It was around 10am that a consultant came over to us and gave her some antibiotics and sent us home.

"My grandmother was really angry, not just at the way she'd been treated but also how other people were being treated too."

Ms Thomas said she witnessed a number of other elderly patients waiting for increasingly long lengths of time in what she described as cramped conditions in the Medical Assessment Unit.

South Wales Argus: Ms Cox was told by a doctor she needed to spend two nights in hospital, but there was no bed space.Ms Cox was told by a doctor she needed to spend two nights in hospital, but there was no bed space.

“It was heart-breaking to see,” Ms Thomas added.

“Nobody wants to see elderly people being treated that way – there were some there that were still waiting when we left.

“There were also others that were in a far worse condition that my grandmother, which was worrying to see.

“I think the problem is that GPs are sending elderly patients there, but they’re not realising that there’s a real shortage of beds at the hospital.

"I phoned again on Thursday morning because she's not keeping her antibiotics down and the hospital said that there's still no beds because of staffing issues."

Ms Thomas has now written to Newport West MS Jayne Bryant and the latter has raised the concerns with Aneurin Bevan University Health Board.

It’s no secret that the NHS in Wales is under immense pressure with waiting times, lack of bed space, and staff-shortages all being widely reported on.

A spokesman for Aneurin Bevan University Health Board said: “We’re very sorry that Ms Cox’s family were unhappy with the care she received; this is not the standard of care that we aim to provide to our patients.

“We recognise that Ms Cox’s wait for a hospital bed, caused by ongoing pressures on our hospital services, is unacceptable.

“As in other areas of Wales and the UK, the knock-on effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and staff shortages across health and social care prevent the flow of patients through our hospitals, which can result in longer waits for hospital beds.

“To mitigate this, we’re continuing to work very closely with our colleagues in Social Care to support patients who are in our hospitals, but fit for discharge, to allow them to return home safely with additional support.”