Lying in agony in urine-soaked sheets: the horrific reality of patient life on an NHS ward

Left in agonising pain, with staff ignoring his cries for help, Martin Wild called 999 from his hospital bed, desperate for someone to get him the medication he needed.

This was just the beginning of the 73-year-old’s “nightmare” experience at the hands of Salford Royal Hospital.

Over nearly five months, the former car salesman says he was subjected to prolonged periods of neglect, including being left to lie in urine-soaked sheets, pleading for medication.

He lost so much weight that, according to his wife, he became skin and bone. One staff member involved in his care said they’d never seen a hospital patient neglected to such a serious degree.

Mr Wild told The Independent that his time at Salford Royal Hospital has shattered his belief in the NHS and that he believes it is not fit for purpose.

“It was a nightmare in that ward. I didn’t feel like there was much caring going on,” he said.

“I used to lie there at night; I could hear people shouting and screaming for help. It was like being in the third world.”

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Source: The Independent, 24 February 2024