A Dublin woman has described her "absolutely horrendous" 24 hour stay in Beaumont's A&E last month that has left her "put off" ever returning to the hospital.
The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, said she was sent to the hospital's A&E on March 21 by her GP with a letter that stated she needed to be seen urgently as she was "suffering from extreme pain in my head and neck".
The patient told Dublin Live: "I was vomiting constantly and on the verge of passing out every time I stood up. I also had a rising temperature. The pain in my head was absolutely unbearable and in that moment I honestly would have rather died than be in the pain I was in.
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"My GP stated all this on the letter and said I urgently needed a CT scan."
She arrived at Beaumont's A&E at exactly 5:50pm and was checked in by 6pm after presenting her letter to reception.
The patient said she was triaged by a nurse at around 7:30pm and was told she "would have a few hours wait to see a doctor but not too long".
The woman then described the "absolutely horrendous" 17 hour wait she endured before seeing a doctor.
"The nurse could see the pain I was in so she gave me two Paracetamol," she said.
"I have waited in Beaumont A&E many times before so I knew I would have a bit of a wait ahead of me and that was okay.
"Nothing could have prepared me for the 17 hour wait I then had for a doctor. 17 hours I was left sitting in a plastic chair in extreme pain.
"It was absolutely horrendous. I cried and vomited my way through. I went up and down asking for painkillers and anti nausea tablets."
The woman said that, at about 4am, she told a staff member that she couldn't take the pain or the waiting any more and was told in response "you've got 12 hours left, sit down, nothing I can do".
The woman works as a healthcare assistant in homecare and cares for a set of elderly patients.
She said her "heart absolutely broke" seeing elderly people waiting in pain in the emergency department.
She said: "At one point, a man in his 80’s who was with his daughter, ended up leaving the department at around 3am. He was in too much pain to continue waiting.
"Everyone around me was in the exact same boat. I was probably one of the youngest waiting and I know if it was one of my parents sitting in that A&E department I’d be absolutely furious.
"For the 17 hours I was sitting there, I got 20 minutes sleep and that was on the floor."
The patient said she was brought in to get her bloods done at around 5am and continued to wait for hours afterwards to see a doctor.
She said: "The next afternoon while I was still waiting, at about 12pm, a member of staff came out to apologise on behalf of Beaumont Hospital for the long waiting times.
"She said the people who presented to A&E the day before at 5pm were now only being seen by a doctor.
"She said that if you were waiting and you think your illness could be dealt with by a GP then you should go home.
"Another staff member then proceeded to tell everyone they should only stay if they’re 'really sick'."
The woman said that one staff member asked her if she was okay and when the woman said 'no to be honest I’ve been waiting all night' the staff member said 'well, ambulances are priority' and the woman burst out crying.
"After waiting all night, I needed a bit of empathy, not to be made feel the way that comment made me feel.
"I’m a very understanding person and of course I understand ambulances and those who are extremely unwell are a priority but I’m also a human being who’s in pain and who’s been left sitting evening, night and morning on a plastic chair."
The patient said she was called by a doctor at 1pm and was seated in another area.
She said an elderly woman on a trolley looked over at her and said: “I’ve been here since 3am (10 hours) and I haven’t seen a doctor yet, isn’t it like a war zone?"
The patient said her CT scan was done "quite quickly" and her doctor told her to "wait back in the chair beside the nurses station where I had been seated".
Other staff members told her to move, however, and she had to go back out to the waiting room where her doctor eventually found her at 6pm.
"She apologised for the wait and also said she hadn’t realised I’d been moved out. My doctor was absolutely lovely and made me feel heard and understood."
The patient said the "awful experience" has "put her off ever wanting to go back into Beaumont".
She said: "I understand hospitals are under pressure due to Covid and staff shortages but it is absolutely inhumane to leave someone sitting on a plastic chair for 17 hours especially with so much pain."
When asked for comment by Dublin Live, Beaumont Hospital said they "do not comment on individual cases".
A spokeswoman said the hospital "have advised that the patient can contact the Patient Advisory Liaison Service with regard to any issues of concern."
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