Scarborough Hospital patient sleeps in car due to bed shortage

Michael Woodcock, suffering from appendicitis, slept in his car due to a bed shortage at Scarborough Hospital

A man suffering from appendicitis has said he slept in his car outside a hospital due to a bed shortage.

Michael Woodcock, from Harrogate, said the alternative was trying to sleep in a chair in a crowded waiting room at Scarborough Hospital's A&E department.

He said he was provided with blankets by nurses.

York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said it was experiencing "the worst pressures on emergency services in our history".

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Mr Woodcock was at pains to point out that he did not blame clinicians for the situation, adding he had no complaints about post-surgery care received, which included eventually being given his own room off the ward.

He and his family had been enjoying Christmas in Whitby, but when he began experiencing severe stomach pains he was advised by health professionals to go to A&E, which he did on 27 December.

Mr Woodcock said he was triaged "fairly quickly" but then had to wait about eight hours to be seen by a doctor.

He said: "The hospital was really busy. There were beds on the sides of corridors and lots of frustrated people in the waiting room."

A scan later confirmed acute appendicitis, requiring an urgent operation. Due to the risk of it bursting, Mr Woodcock was told he would need to stay in hospital overnight.

He said: "There were no beds. I ended up getting some blankets and sleeping in the car for a few hours before heading back to the hospital in the morning for the operation."

In a statement, York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the hospital, said: "Like hospitals across the country, our emergency departments are under severe strain and in the last couple of days we have experienced the worst pressures on emergency services in our history.

"Increased staff absence and high numbers of patients waiting to be discharged who no longer need to be in hospital have had an impact on our emergency departments, resulting in patients waiting much longer for beds to become available.

"We recognise this means many patients will spend a long time in the emergency department before they are admitted to a ward, and we are sorry for this. Our staff are working exceptionally hard in the most difficult of circumstances."

Ashley Green, chief executive of watchdog Healthwatch North Yorkshire, said Mr Woodcock's experience was "very concerning".

He added: "No patient should have to go through what Michael has. Such a personal experience reiterates the pressures that the NHS and hospitals across North Yorkshire are facing this winter, which are further exacerbated by new cases of Covid-19 and flu, alongside backlogs in treatment, set against the continuing workforce crisis in health and social care.

"We continue to highlight the urgent need for increased staffing, funding and resources across the NHS."