A woman with a heart condition walked out of A&E after a 15 hour wait for treatment. The 22-year-old said of the experience: "I may as well have been in pain at home in my own bed."
The patient, who asked not to be named, added that the accident and emergency department at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd in Bodelwyddan, North Wales, was so busy late Friday night and early Saturday morning (August and 6) that, had she not left, her wait would have gone on even longer. She also revealed that many had been told by staff to expect wait times of "up to 17 hours minimum."
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board said it was sorry to hear about her experience and said it was busy at weekends despite the "best efforts" of staff. It comes off the back of calls that were made for an "urgent improvement" at Ysbyty Glan Clwyd following another damning report, North Wales Live reports.
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The woman, who's prone to nasty migraines, dizziness and loss of balance, rang NHS Direct on Friday and they advised her to go to hospitalfor a scan. She said, "There were about 50 people in the waiting room when I got there at 8pm on Friday.
"I ended up leaving at 11.30am the next morning because I hadn't been seen. At about 1am (early Saturday) a nurse had come out to the waiting room and said it was going to be a 17-hour wait - minimum - to see a doctor.
"And there was only one doctor on duty. So everyone got upset and there was a bit of a mutiny where a load of people walked out - I just thought it was ridiculous.
"If I was going to be in pain I'd rather be in pain in my own bed because I've got meds there which I take for my symptoms." She also reported that there were several people sleeping on the chairs and on the floor at A&E.
However, she said she felt sorry for frontline staff having to bear the brunt of people's frustrations. "There were police there, there were people who were drunk and shouting things."
She added: "The NHS does an amazing job. I just want to bring attention to how they're struggling."
Dr Nick Lyons, Executive Medical Director at Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, said: "We are very sorry to hear one of our patients is unhappy with the care they received and we would encourage them to contact us directly with any concerns.
"Our emergency departments were extremely busy over the weekend, resulting in longer waiting times, despite the best efforts of our nursing and medical staff. We urge the public to help by asking patients who do not need full emergency hospital treatment get appropriate advice and care from other NHS services, including minor injuries and local pharmacies."
In 2020, Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board were allocated additional funding of £30m per year to run from 2021-2022 to 2023-2024, which was to be directed as supporting the performance of unscheduled care and planned care improvements. This included developments in diagnostics.
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