A PENSIONER says he is furious after his stricken wife was made to wait four hours for an ambulance and then four further hours for stitching in hospital.

Chris Laybourn, of Hathaway Road, spoke out after his wife Carole suffered a fall at Orchard Garden Centre in Chadwell Road, on Saturday, April 29.

Mrs Laybourn, who is currently living in Hollywood Care Home in Cresthill Avenue, Grays, saw her head was wounded and bleeding profusely.

Mr Laybourn was quick to pay tribute to care his wife received, but says he was frustrated at the wait for the ambulance and at Basildon Hospital.

He said: “It all took so long, from the call to the ambulance until when it was all over. We weren’t finished until 1am.

“The garden centre staff were very good, and they seemed to have good first aid. They supplied food and compression to the wound.

“We had to make several calls to chase the ambulance up.

“We were told it would be two hours, which came and went. The care was great once she had it, but it was just the time it took”

An ambulance service spokesman said: “We would like to apologise to the patient for their wait and any distress this may have caused.

“What had happened to Mrs Laybourn was coded as serious, but not life-threatening.

“Unfortunately, due to high levels of demand that day, which saw more than 1,000 emergency calls in Essex, we were not able to get an ambulance to the patient until 7.26pm.

“Two separate ambulance crews were dispatched prior to this, but had to be diverted to life-threatening emergencies.

“The patient was assessed before being taken to Basildon and Thurrock Hospital and we hope that she is making a good recovery.

“We would urge the patient or her family to get in touch if they have any further questions or concerns.”

A Basildon Hospital spokesman said: “Patients are assessed by a nurse on arrival in A&E, and then treated on a priority basis according to the severity of their illness or injury.”

Guidance on the NHS website states an A&E department deals with “genuine life-threatening emergencies”.

These include “loss of consciousness, acute confused state and fits that are not stopping, persistent, severe chest pain, breathing difficulties, severe bleeding that cannot be stopped, severe allergic reactions, severe burns or scalds.”