Ann Clwyd: Husband Owen Roberts' 27 hours on A&E trolley

Owen Roberts worked at BBC Wales in the 70s and was an ITV executive

The late husband of Labour MP Ann Clwyd was kept on a trolley in the emergency department of Wales' largest hospital for 27 hours, she has revealed.

Ms Clwyd was speaking for the first time about the report into Owen Roberts' death at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff in 2012.

She has said her husband was treated like a "battery hen."

Cardiff and Vale University Health Board has apologised unreservedly and said the failings were "unacceptable".

The Cynon Valley MP has made a public protest about the care her late husband received while he was in hospital last year.

She said her husband was treated with coldness, indifference and even contempt by NHS staff "who didn't care".

After speaking out about her concerns, Prime Minister David Cameron asked her to review how hospitals in England deal with complaints from patients and their families.

She has now received a confidential report from the health board and spoke about her husband's care in a Commons debate on NHS complaints.

Speaking on BBC Radio Wales she said: "I did feel that it was very difficult to speak to nursing staff.

"In fact, on the night before he died I stopped a nurse in a corridor and asked why he wasn't in intensive care and she brushed me aside and said 'there are a lot worse than he is' and then walked on.

Ann Clwyd was asked by David Cameron to review how hospitals in England deal with complaints

"So I didn't even have a discussion with her and, of course, the next day Owen died."

Ms Clwyd compared her husband's 27 hours on a trolley in A&E or its spill-over ward with the four-hour target introduced in England a decade ago.

She said: "If they think four hours is too long, then 27 hours definitely is.

"There is an admission that he should not have been nursed in that area for the length of time he remained there and that it fell significantly below the standard expected and this is unacceptable.

"That's just one aspect of it. There were lots of things about his care I was concerned about."

Ms Clwyd said that she had asked a GP friend to examine the report and said her conclusion was that "Owen was not properly treated or investigated".

The health board said it wanted to offer its "sincere condolences" to Ms Clwyd and her family.

It said: "Given the gravity of the concerns raised by Ms Clwyd about her husband's care, we set up an independent panel to oversee an investigation.

"The panel was made up of Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan Community Health Council, the patient watchdog, Health Inspectorate Wales and an independent member of the health board.

"The investigation was undertaken in line with the requirements of the NHS concerns process, Putting Things Right. Every concern raised by Ms Clwyd was investigated.

"We have shared the outcome of the investigation with Ms Clwyd and have offered to meet with her to discuss the findings.

"It would not be right for us to publish what is a private report for Ms Clwyd. In view of Ms Clwyd's comments however, we would welcome Ms Clwyd releasing the report in its entirety into the public domain.

"We fully appreciate how difficult it is for anyone to raise concerns about the care of a loved one at such an emotional time and we would like to thank Ms Clwyd for her input into the investigation, which has been invaluable in helping us understand her experience."