A WOMAN was lay on the hospital floor in agony after 'unprecedented pressure' left her without a bed for several hours..

Kyra Dew, aged 22, was unable to sit or stand due to the excruciating pain she was experiencing after attending the A&E department at Hereford County Hospital on Wednesday, but due to a bed shortage she was left lying in the hospital's waiting room for several hours.

Kyra is suffering with Laser of Endometriosis and exploring pain along with Poly Cystic Ovarian Disease. Due to a long operation waiting list the NHS sent her to St Joseph's private hospital, in Newport, for an operation in December.

It was hoped that the operation had solved the problem. However, on Wednesday Kyra started suffering pain.

"When Kyra starts suffering pain she shakes with pain," said her mother Sandra Dew.

She was taken to A&E at 2pm and was seen within the hour by triage and given oral morphine. However, by 3.30pm Kyra had taken a turn for the worse and the pain became so great that she was unable to sit or stand so had to lie down.

Staff made her comfortable but she remained lay on the waiting room floor until 7.15pm when a bed was found, her mother says.

"There was no beds or trollies so she could only lie down on the floor and the receptionist got some bedding and made her comfortable," said Mrs Dew.

"The staff were brilliant and were running around like mad. The closure of the Asda Walk-in centre people meant that people were coming into A&E with cut fingers and bruises on their heads and could have be assessed somewhere else."

"When a doctor came to see her there were other buzzers going off and he was working after his shift had finished.

"I do feel for the staff as this is down to the Government cut-backs."

Kyra was given a scan before being sent home the following day.

"Unfortunately due to getting used to the Tramadol and oral morph, A&E is the only option most months," added Mrs Dew.

A spokesman for Hereford County Hospital said: "Unfortunately, our Emergency Department was experiencing high demand at this time. Wye Valley NHS Trust has experienced unprecedented pressure on its services in recent weeks. This pressure is unrelenting.

"These winter pressures have been well documented in the media and, like other NHS Trusts, WVT has plans to help it cope with these extra demands on its services.

"Patients are triaged within the Emergency Department to ensure they are seen and treated according to their clinical need.

"In a county with many older people we see many very sick, elderly and frail patients who need to be prioritised and treated urgently. This can lead to less serious patients waiting longer for treatment.

"We apologise to those patients who have had to wait longer than they would have expected. While we can’t comment on individual patients, it would be true to say that we are committed to ensuring that every patient who comes through our doors receives the best possible care we can give them. Our dedicated team of staff in the Emergency Department has been working under enormous pressure for several weeks and we would like to pay tribute to their professionalism and the compassionate care they give our patients."

Hereford County Hospital want to remind the public of the alternatives they should consider before visiting the Emergency Department: Visit your local pharmacy for advice, use NHS Choices or NHS 111 or contact their local GP practice.