A MAN’S bleed on the brain was missed after doctors failed to carry out a vital scan for nearly a week.

Harold Wylde, 65, was sent home from Basildon Hospital’s A&E department with migraine tablets and antibiotics despite being in extreme pain.

He spent four days at his home, in Acorn Place, Langdon Hills, trying to cope, but terrified wife Beverley, 57, was forced to rush him back to A&E, as he could barely move.

This time, the retired sign maker, who is diabetic, was put on steroids to numb the pain and admitted to a hospital bed.

Despite Mrs Wylde pleading for an immediate brain scan for her husband, nobody ordered one until a specialist consultant saw him two days later.

It showed Mr Wylde had a subdural haematoma – a serious condition which causes blood to collect between the skull and the surface of the brain.

He was transferred to Queen’s Hospital, Romford, and rushed to surgery the next morning.

Mrs Wylde said: “He’d been having headaches for about a week and it got so bad I called an ambulance.

“I don’t want to think about what could have happened if the consultant hadn’t seen him that day. It’s very worrying.

“Surely when a scan can eliminate something serious, it should be done straight away.

Having to see my husband in so much pain was heartbreaking.”

Mr Wylde was sent home two days after his operation. He was told there was a risk of seizures, but is now fully recovered.

The ordeal took place in September, but the couple decided to lodge a complaint with Basildon Hospital this week.

Mr Wylde said: “The pain was terrible. The days all just blended into one. The steroids they gave me just hid the problem. I believed what they were telling me at the time, but looking back it was obvious there was something seriously wrong. I just don’t understand how it took nearly seven days for a scan.”

Basildon Hospital insists there was no delay in treatment.

A spokesman said: “We regret Mr and MrsWylde have concerns about the care he received and will be carrying out a thorough investigation into their claims.

“Initial investigations show none of Mr Wylde’s symptoms indicated the need for a CT scan.

Once he was admitted to hospital for close monitoring, a CT scan was requested and carried out at the earliest opportunity.

“During hospital stays it may seem to patients and their loved ones that nothing is being done, when the reality is our staff are working hard behind the scenes to request, process, complete, analyse, discuss and review patient samples, tests and consultations.”