"Long wait for a bed"

Mother in her 90s with terminal cancer found on bedroom floor, unable to get up, rang for ambulance and was told 1 hour, said this was not good enough but was told that's what it will be, put the phone down rang again and the next operator said 5 mins, ambulance arrived the two girl crew where excellent and took mother to the a and e. arrived at a and e and, crew wanted to take mum to the critical area but there was no room, she was red flagging sepsis with serious low blood pressure, a room was found on majors and for 1 1/2 hours waited to see doctor, nurses administered antibiotics and fluids, after two hours mum recovered slightly and was moved onto the corridor, mum as a very large and painful sarcoma on her back and finds it extremely difficult to lie back, after 5 hours on the corridor mum needed the toilet, we asked corridor nurse for help but there where no facilities available, nurse said she would come back, another hour passed and we tracked the corridor nurse down and asked again, she turned up with a chair and tried to manoeuver mum of the trolley onto the chair, it was explained that mums legs where so swollen that she couldn't, move them and was unsafe to try and move, another 20mins went by before a room was found so mum could use a bed pan in privacy, for 25 mins the space vacated by mums trolley had to be defended from nurses trying to park patients there, although a drink and sandwich was offered on her arrival mum was to poorly to eat/drink, later on in the day she became very thirsty and hungry it was found that the snack and drinks machines where out of order, so mum had to be left alone whilst we went to the shop in the main building.

It was realised the the analgesic and saline the was prescribed by the doctor some 6 hours previous had not been administered we had to ask the corridor nurse to give mum her medication, because of mums low blood pressure the doctor came to see mum again and asses her in the corridor in front of everyone at this point my wife broke down trying to explain mums situation to the doctor who listened and showed sympathy and said he would try to bump mum up the waiting list, so 10 hours after arriving at the a and e department a critically ill old lady in her 90s was found a bed. Home and mobile numbers where left with staff but when we returned the following day we thought the worst as mum wast where we had left her, she had been moved but no one thought to let the family know. who ever came up with the idea of shutting all the a and e in the surrounding areas and send them all to Blackburn must be a right buffoon, even getting on and off the car park was a nightmare, but even though the hospital is run like a war zone most of the staff are caring and kind. I hope some one who makes the decisions at Blackburn Royal reads this and try's to put things right, as a family we where all traumatised from are visit to Blackburn Royal Hospital.