A VALE pensioner has hit out at Worcester's new hospital facilities after he was left on a hospital trolley for hours and his wife was transported to an intensive care unit in Redditch.

Norman Ley was taken to Worcester Royal Hospital with suspected internal bleeding and was sent home because of a bed shortage, despite doctors wanting to admit him, he said.

The 77-year-old was forced to wait eight hours on a hospital trolley after being admitted to Worcester Royal Hospital in the early hours of last month. Despite numerous blood tests and examinations, doctors could find nothing wrong.

The retired schoolteacher, of Priest Lane, Pershore, said: "My visit culminated in a houseman who said: 'I was going to keep you under observation for 24 hours, but there are no beds, so I am sending you home'."

Mr Ley's anger was further compounded when his wife was admitted to the same hospital last Tuesday. Judy Ley, aged 63, suffers from Crohn's Disease and has undergone eight operations in recent years.

Mrs Ley was admitted to the Worcester Royal after feeling nauseous, where her condition steadily worsened. By Thursday evening Mrs Ley needed intensive care, but due to a bed shortage she had to be transferred to the intensive care unit in Redditch, where she remains.

Mr Ley said: " I am absolutely incensed by this. This is taking place in mid-summer. I hate to think what the coming winter has in store. My wife is in a right state and the doctors do not know what the problem is."

Richard Haynes, spokesman for the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust said: "If Mr Ley has any concerns about any treatment he or his wife has received he should contact us directly."

Mr Haynes added: "The Trust was clear that the move to the new hospital did not result in a loss of beds and it now means the people in the area are being treated in the best possible surroundings."