A WOMAN was left for more than 15 hours without medical care at Basingstoke Hospital after being admitted for treatment for cellulitis.

Caroline Ashman, from South Ham, had been referred to the hospital by her GP after cellulitis flared up in her left leg.

The 53-year-old arrived at the Acute Assessment Unit (AAU) on September 18, and was placed on an IV drip.

But this is where she says the standard of her care stopped.

Mrs Ashman said: “I was told to go sit back in reception and I had to elevate my leg on a table.

“I was left there for five and a half hours, by which time the drip had long run out.

“Nobody had checked on me or anything.”

After six hours in the hospital, Mrs Ashman – who is diabetic – was told a bed was ready for her, but it ended up being a trolley in a hallway.

“Have you ever tried to lie down on one of those things? You can’t even move,” added Mrs Ashman.

“Luckily I had brought my own insulin with me, but not one member of staff stopped to ask if I was okay, or to check that I was still awake.

“I appreciate that they were really busy, but why couldn’t they have just sent me home rather than having me wait around not being seen to and not being offered any hot food?

“I would have received better treatment in a prison hospital than the care myself and fellow patients received in AAU.

“I would have had a bed, not a trolley, I would been given necessary meds and a hot meal.

“It was like being in the third world.”

Mrs Ashman told The Gazette that the basic standards of care people expect when they go for health care were not met and she did not receive her medication.

She added: “I just hope that someone who comes in after me doesn’t have to go through the same thing I did.”

The Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which is responsible for the running of Basingstoke Hospital, said an investigation into Mrs Ashman’s care had been launched to gather more information from the AAU team.

Alex Whitfield, chief executive of the Trust, said: “We are very sorry that Mrs Ashman’s experience was not of the high standard we aim to provide.

“An internal investigation into the care received by Mrs Ashman is under way and we will work closely with her throughout this process.”