A grandmother who was in crippling pain with her stomach left a note on a hospital trolley bed saying “sorry I have gone home” after waiting 10 hours to see a doctor.

Katheline Howdle’s GP called an ambulance when she visited Rushall Medical Centre, Walsall, on July 30 because she was worried about her symptoms. Mrs Howdle, aged 59, of Claire Road, had crippling pains in her stomach and was coughing up blood. She says she arrived at Walsall Manor Hospital at about 12.35pm and was taken to the assessment ward.

By 9pm she said she was still waiting to be seen but staff brought her a trolley bed so she could lie down.

At 10pm she said a junior doctor spoke to her and told her a senior doctor would see her but he could not say when. By 10.45pm she decided to leave a note on the bed saying she had left.

Katheline, who says she is writing a letter of complaint, said: “I realise the hospital is very busy but I had waited nearly 10 hours to be seen.

“I was in crippling pain with my stomach and I kept being sick and coughing up blood. In the end I felt agitated and just wanted to get out so I decided to leave a note on an envelope.

“I do have problems with a hernia and I am waiting for an operation. But when I started coughing up blood I did get worried.”

Hospital spokeswoman Anna Sykes said that they were very sorry to hear of the distress caused and added: “We always welcome comments and feedback from patients as a way of improving our services and would encourage Katheline to contact us through our formal complaints procedure, so that we can look at our records in detail and the events of that day.”