Hospital chiefs in Bradford promise cutting trolley waits in the city's casualty department will be their number one priority.

Top-level talks were held yesterday to discuss how to tackle the problem, highlighted in the cases of two seriously ill pensioners who waited hours on trolleys in the accident and emergency department at Bradford Royal Infirmary.

Hospital bosses have now issued an apology to the family of one of the patients Iris Wright, 67, of Wyke, who waited nearly nine hours on a trolley after suffering a stroke.

John Bakes, 72, of Thornton, waited nearly six hours before he was found a bed after he went to casualty with chest pains and later died.

Chief executive of Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust, David Jackson, said long waits on trolleys were extremely rare but offered an assurance whatever action was necessary would be taken to end excessive waits and speed up admission of patients onto wards.

"Despite facing considerable pressures from a rising number of emergency admissions - a situation which has proved exceptional of late - our staff make every effort to ensure that patients are admitted to an appropriate ward as quickly as possible," he said.

"Neither I nor anybody else in our hospitals believe excessive waits are acceptable and I shall make sure that every effort is made to secure a solution. This is our number one priority."

Mrs Wright's son John said he was pleased by the pledge.

"It's brilliant news if they stick to their word," he said.

"This is all we wanted so at the end of the day it helps other people in the future."

Mrs Wright's MP Gerry Sutcliffe, who raised her care with hospital chiefs, said he would closely monitor the situation to make sure action was taken.

"I welcome the news they are going to act but we still need to know what they are going to do to prevent it happening in future," he said.

In a letter to Mr Wright, Rose Stephens, director of operations (surgery) at Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust, apologised for the length of time his mother had waited, describing it as 'unacceptable'.

She said it had been an extremely busy day and there were no beds available due to a large number of admissions of seriously ill people.

"Nevertheless it is inexcusable that your mother should have been kept waiting in the accident and emergency department for such a long time for which I again offer my unreserved apologies," she said.

"I can fully appreciate the additional anxiety and distress this must have caused during what must already have been an extremely worrying time."

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