A pensioner has described being "completely traumatised" after a 24 hour stint in A&E as health watchdog inspectors reported a "deterioration" at Princess Royal University Hospital.

The King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, which manages PRUH, was told by the Care Quality Commission that it required improvement during its latest inspection.

The ominous report found that there was a "deterioration in expected standards in the emergency department".

It said the care provided was good, but that "safety and effectiveness" required more work.

Pam Remon, 75, spoke to News Shopper about her experience at the hospital on April 9 – days after knee replacement surgery.

She said she was advised via a rapid response team to go to A&E because of a suspected pulmonary embolism and she arrived at 5pm.

"The area was packed to capacity with no seating and people were sitting on the floor," Pam said.

She described being in "excruciating pain" and feeling ill.

All seats were taken, and Pam’s daughter found a wheelchair, without a leg supporting attachment, meaning her grandchildren had to hold her leg straight.

Hours later Pam had a blood test and an x-ray before going back to A&E where the "chaos was horrendous".

She said: "People were bleeding, crying and shouting. One woman was dripping in blood. A couple with a young baby were very angry and shouting as they had been there for many hours.

"They eventually left without being seen. One woman who had a hip problem could not sit and needed to lie down and she was still there standing when I eventually left to see a doctor."

Pam has lived in Bromley for 45 years and has had similar experiences at the hospital.

The latest CQC report, published on June 12, stated that the privacy and dignity of patients was not always maintained.

Pam, who sent her family home, saw a doctor at 1am before being sent to an A&E cubical at 2.30am to sit in an "uncomfortable trolley".

"I was in so much pain," Pam said. "I was feeling very traumatised by now and at the end of my tether."

She said she was stuck there until 1pm the following day and had still not eaten.

After being rushed to an x-ray department, she was given a soft bed, a sandwich and a cup of tea.

"I was completely traumatised and exhausted," she said.

Pam said she was eventually told at 3.30pm that she did not have a blood clot in her lungs, and was allowed home.

She concluded: "It took me a week to recover from this horrendous experience and I still feel the trauma of it.

"I also believe it set me back in my recovery as I was unable to do the exercises that are so important in the early stages when recovering from a knee replacement."

She believes the waiting area is too small and is regularly overcrowded.

The CQC report cited a "lack of effective leadership" in PRUH’s emergency department along with "significant" overcrowding.

A spokeswoman for the trust said: "The report recognises improvements in maternity, end of life care and for patients with mental health conditions at King’s College Hospital (Denmark Hill).

"However, there are areas that require focused attention in terms of patient care, staff morale and running our hospitals more effectively and efficiently.

"We have already taken immediate action to tackle the issues at the Princess Royal University Hospital Emergency Department, improve our performance as well as working with staff to improve morale."