A sick 93-year-old was forced to sleep on a chair in an Emergency Department corridor overnight as she waited for a hospital bed.
NI Patient Voice revealed details of the situation just before 10am on Monday.
It is understood the woman first attended Antrim Area Hospital’s Emergency Department at 11am on Sunday morning with her daughter.
But 24 hours on the elderly lady, who has been described as “off her feet”, had still not been properly admitted to the hospital to be treated for an infection.
Aidan Hanna from NI Patient Voice said: "This family got in touch with us saying that they were really, really unhappy that she was put to sleep on a chair overnight.
"The lady was brought to hospital on Sunday morning and she was still there [in ED] 24 hours later because there were no beds available.
"Someone who is 93 in 2020 should be in a bed in the hour."
Earlier this month, we revealed how one in 12 patients who attended Northern Ireland’s EDs throughout December had to wait more than 12 hours to finish their treatment or be admitted to hospital despite a slight drop in the numbers requesting emergency treatment.
Politicians have repeatedly called for action to reduce the waiting times which are far in excess of health targets, while health chiefs continually apologise.
We asked the Northern Trust about this specific case.
A spokesperson for the health body, which oversees Antrim Area Hospital, said: “Antrim Emergency Department is currently under significant pressure and a number of patients are awaiting admission to beds.
“We are unable to comment on individual cases, however, all efforts are being made to ensure patients are seen as quickly and safely as possible.
“We would like to thank staff for their continued hard work at this time.”
