A COLWYN BAY lady has described an seven day ordeal in Glan Clwyd Hospital as “the worst experience of my life”.

Maria Pedrosa-Estrella was left waiting with a fractured humerus for seven days, while receiving what she described as little care, before the hospital was finally able to operate.

The ordeal in the hospital followed a six and a half hour wait for an ambulance, on April 4, after the 60-year-old fell while working at a bed and breakfast in Colwyn Bay.

Having called the ambulance at 5.30pm it finally arrived at about midnight and took her to Glan Clwyd Hospital.

Upon arrival she was made to wait again for hours to be seen for an x-ray which revealed she had a fractured humerus and would need an operation. From there she was taken to a ward arriving at about 11pm on April 5.

From then on for the next six days she was constantly told she would be having surgery, made to fast and then later in the day told the operation had been cancelled - some days not even given a reason.

Mrs Pedrosa Estrella said she went up to three days without eating and even then only breaking this period with a small packet sandwich which she was forced to open herself, with her fractured humerus.

In a letter to Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board she also outlined a number of other issues. She included the unacceptable behaviour from the nurses who she said referred to her as "the Spanish", did not help her go to the toilet, offer to bath her or change her IV drip or plasters - which by the end she said was bloody and dirty.

She said she requested the to take a shower, with help, three times to which nurses responded to by giving her a bucket with water and a sponge.

Mrs Pedrosa Estrella is from Spain and travels back and forth between her home in Valencia and Colwyn Bay, where she works and lives in a bed and breakfast, every six or so months.

This meant she was forced to undertake this ordeal with no family by her side.

Her daughter arrived on the sixth day having heard about her mother state.

In an exclusive interview with Pioneer reporter Patrick Glover, Mrs Pedrosa Estrella said: "This was the worst experience of my life. It was the most pain I've been in and the most I have been discriminated against in my life.

"It was the worst feeling in the world, people were ignoring me, it felt like I was a ghost, just invisible, it was very sad.

"After five days I just started to cry, I was just so weak and so sad, it was horrible.

"I was just lying there worried, thinking the worst, that they might cut my arm off."

Finally on April 11, she underwent the operation and will now recover with her arm in a cast over the next 12 weeks, while also undergoing rehabilitation. This will also mean she is unable to work.

Mrs Pedrosa Estrella said the feeling after the operation was overwhelming having been through so much.

She said: "I opened my eyes after the operation and I started crying and tears just kept flowing.But this time they were tears of happiness.

"I was very happy that I had finished the torture. Although, psychologically it was very damaging, I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep for days after the operation."

It has been a few days since the incident now and she said each day she gradually gets better and better.

She has now written a letter to the health board requesting a formal apology.

A Betsi Cadwaldr spokesperson said: “We’ve received correspondence from Mrs Pedrosa and will respond to her concerns as soon as possible.”

Mrs Pedrosa Estrella said she hoped this issue could be resolved so no one had to go through the ordeal she did.