By . Daily Mail Reporter . Ignored: Terry Burns, 44, who had previously had a double bypass, spent the night at Royal Preston Hospital in a chair . A heart patient was forced to spend the night in A&E sleeping in a chair after the hospital ran out of beds. Heart patient Terry Burns, 44, was admitted to Royal Preston Hospital, Lancashire, last Wednesday night for an ECG and blood tests. But when his family returned the following morning, they found him still in the same chair in the waiting room. Hospital staff have now apologised to Mr . Burns, who underwent a double heart bypass three years ago, saying there . was not a shortage of beds but that the hospital had been 'unusually . busy'. Although some tests were carried out, there was no bed for him by the time his sister Tina Burns-Moore left that evening. When . she returned in the morning she was horrified to find her brother . sitting in the same chair she had left him in, fully clothed and . unwashed. Ms Burns-Moore, 45, said: ‘We are really angry. He has come in for help because he hasn’t been well. ‘If . they couldn’t accommodate him, someone could have contacted us and we . could have taken him to sleep in his own bed, if things were that . desperate. ‘He didn’t really sleep [well] in the chair. It was chaos - there were people coming and going. ‘My . brother tells me there were a lot of people in the same position. 'There . was a lady on a trolley in a bay who was asked to get off the trolley . because they needed it. ‘I just think people need to know what is happening because it is a terrible state of affairs.’ Mr Burns, who lives in Bamber Bridge, Lancashire, was given a bed later that day and was able to get some rest while he and his family awaited the test results. Apology issued: Despite staff knowing he had undergone a double bypass three years ago, Mr Burns, from Bamber Bridge, was forced to spend the night sleeping in a chair in the waiting area at the hospital's A&E . Karen Partington, chief executive of Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: ‘Firstly we would like to sincerely apologise for the delay in identifying a bed for Mr Burns. ‘Our priority is to always provide excellent care with compassion for our patients and we regret that in this instance that was not achieved. ‘We very much encourage any patients and families who have any queries about their care and treatment to contact the team that is looking after them or talk to our patient advice and liaison services. ‘We have already started an investigation into why this happened and will take action to ensure this does not happen in the future.’ A hospital spokesman added there was not a regular shortage of beds and Mr Burns was unfortunate to have been admitted during an unusually busy period.
Grandfather with heart condition forced to sleep in chair at A&E .
Terry Burns, 44, spent the night in waiting area due to lack of beds .
Royal Preston Hospital, Lancashire, has now apologised .
Back to Mail Online home .
Back to the page you came from .
By . Daily Mail Reporter . Ignored: Terry Burns, 44, who had previously had a double bypass, spent the night at Royal Preston Hospital in a chair . A heart patient was forced to spend the night in A&E sleeping in a chair after the hospital ran out of beds. Heart patient Terry Burns, 44, was admitted to Royal Preston Hospital, Lancashire, last Wednesday night for an ECG and blood tests. But when his family returned the following morning, they found him still in the same chair in the waiting room. Hospital staff have now apologised to Mr . Burns, who underwent a double heart bypass three years ago, saying there . was not a shortage of beds but that the hospital had been 'unusually . busy'. Although some tests were carried out, there was no bed for him by the time his sister Tina Burns-Moore left that evening. When . she returned in the morning she was horrified to find her brother . sitting in the same chair she had left him in, fully clothed and . unwashed. Ms Burns-Moore, 45, said: ‘We are really angry. He has come in for help because he hasn’t been well. ‘If . they couldn’t accommodate him, someone could have contacted us and we . could have taken him to sleep in his own bed, if things were that . desperate. ‘He didn’t really sleep [well] in the chair. It was chaos - there were people coming and going. ‘My . brother tells me there were a lot of people in the same position. 'There . was a lady on a trolley in a bay who was asked to get off the trolley . because they needed it. ‘I just think people need to know what is happening because it is a terrible state of affairs.’ Mr Burns, who lives in Bamber Bridge, Lancashire, was given a bed later that day and was able to get some rest while he and his family awaited the test results. Apology issued: Despite staff knowing he had undergone a double bypass three years ago, Mr Burns, from Bamber Bridge, was forced to spend the night sleeping in a chair in the waiting area at the hospital's A&E . Karen Partington, chief executive of Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: ‘Firstly we would like to sincerely apologise for the delay in identifying a bed for Mr Burns. ‘Our priority is to always provide excellent care with compassion for our patients and we regret that in this instance that was not achieved. ‘We very much encourage any patients and families who have any queries about their care and treatment to contact the team that is looking after them or talk to our patient advice and liaison services. ‘We have already started an investigation into why this happened and will take action to ensure this does not happen in the future.’ A hospital spokesman added there was not a regular shortage of beds and Mr Burns was unfortunate to have been admitted during an unusually busy period.
the night at Royal Preston Hospital in a chair . A heart patient was forced to spend the night in out of beds. Heart patient Terry Burns, 44, was admitted to Royal Preston Hospital, Lancashire, the night sleeping in a chair in the waiting area