Patients dying in 'flawed' system, says MP

The hospital is looking into the woman's death

A Leicestershire MP says there are "fundamental flaws" in the NHS after a woman died following an eight-hour wait on a hospital trolley.

Brenda Jones, 53, had collapsed three times at home before being taken to Leicester Royal Infirmary on Monday.

Her husband Allan believes his wife might still be alive if she had received better care.

Leicester East MP Keith Vaz says a parliamentary debate over trolley waits at hospitals is urgently needed.

'Real people'

"What I shall be asking for is a debate in the Commons.

"There is a fundamental flaw in the system. We cannot keep talking about how to make it better all the time.

Alan Jones wants an apology from the hospital

"This is real people, real human beings not statistics dying in the system.

"We have got to do something about it and it has got to be done as quickly as possible."

A statement from the hospital said a full investigation is already underway into Mrs Jones' death.

Mr Jones says he is "furious and disgusted" at his wife's treatment.

"I would like to know why they didn't take proper care of her," he said.

The hospital statement said: "The accident and emergency department was fully staffed with no fewer than five doctors," the statement said.

"The department was under extreme pressure and busier than usual that evening, when seven critically-ill patents, all requiring resuscitation, were admitted in a continuous stream."

No quick fix

The hospital's chief executive has spoken to Mr Jones and will contact him after the investigation is finished.

Mr Vaz set up a "trolley watch" hotline after a number of long waits on trollies at the hospital.

Last month 97-year-old Evelyn Brown had to wait 10 hours with a suspected hip fracture.

Mrs Brown was seen by a nurse within an hour, but had to wait on a trolley until a bed was eventually found nine hours later.

Mr Vaz met with hospital officials on 16 November, but was told there was "no quick fix" to the problems of trolley waits.

Mrs Jones, who was a member of the Salvation Army, first collapsed on Monday afternoon, but when the doctor arrived he said a bed was not available at the hospital.

Mr Jones called an ambulance at 1830 GMT and when his wife arrived at the hospital she was fourth in line for a bed.

She was seen an hour later by a nurse and two hours later by a doctor, but eventually died at 0330 GMT on Tuesday on a trolley in the corridor.

Mrs Jones had chronic asthma, but a post mortem examination is being carried out to determine the exact cause of her death.