Following the ordeal, Mr McCaffrey’s family lodged a complaint with the Western Trust, and now — more than a year on — they have received a response.

It revealed the store cupboard was deemed to be an “escalation space” that the trust was authorised to use during periods of overcrowding.

“The room in question has many functions and is one of a number of escalation spaces used to help manage overcrowding whilst preserving as far as possible a patient’s privacy, dignity and respect,” they said.

“This was at a time when there were a number of ambulance crew waiting with patients to be admitted to the Emergency Department and the demand for space at this peak time was high.

“In order to expedite your father’s care, hospital staff were required to use this room.

“Ms Reid (Assistant Director for Nursing) would like to sincerely apologise for any upset this caused to your father, however the use of escalation spaces is authorised under our current internal processes.”

Since the suspension of emergency general surgery at the South West Acute Hospital in December 2022, patients have been transferred to Altnagelvin.

Altnagelvin’s ED is currently the oldest in Northern Ireland. Having been built to cater for around 40,000 patients it now sees in the region of 70,000 per year.

A recent review by the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) independent health watchdog highlighted a need to prevent patients spending time waiting at both emergency departments and made an urgent recommendation for the trust to resolve the situation.

Mr McCaffrey was one patient who experienced the “double ED” wait.

The trust said pressures during January 2024 had affected their ability to ensure direct access to surgical beds in Londonderry.

“The trust acknowledges the negative impact ED to ED transfers can have on patient experience and has been making improvements to keep this to a minimum,” said the complaint response.

“This will continue to be an area of focus for the trust.”

A further apology was provided to another elderly patient who waited almost 39 hours during a double ED visit, most of which was spent in a chair.

“Our patients, once admitted to hospital, should be transferred to a ward bed as soon as one becomes available. The issue here is that there are significant delays throughout the system,” they said. The response also apologised for a lack of pillows and blankets in the ED and the fact the patient was not provided with a “ring-fenced” bed following transfer from SWAH.

The Western Trust said spaces such as the storeroom in which Mr McCaffrey was assessed are for “very short term” use.

“Due to the limited physical space within Altnagelvin’s ED and the very significant number of attendances we continue to manage, there are occasions when other identified spaces are used for very short term use to assess patients.” said a spokesperson.

The Department of Health said escalation spaces were an “operational matter” for individual trusts.

“Corridor care is not the standard that doctors, nurses, Allied Health Professionals or ambulance crews aspire to deliver, nor a standard which should become normalised, and the Department acknowledges the distress this causes to patients and staff,” said a spokesperson.

“We will work collectively with the professional bodies and the health and social care system to proactively seek solutions to help address this.

“The department would not stipulate where an escalation bed, or examination space, should be located.

“It is an operational matter for trusts to decide what examination spaces they use, and they will seek to find appropriate spaces, taking into consideration a range of factors such as patient dignity, privacy, and infection prevention.

“HSC trusts collate information on an ongoing basis on escalation beds in hospitals. These will include additional beds provided in different locations including wards and corridors.

This information is available and regularly updated within the HSC system for operational management purposes. Patients in the ED who are awaiting admission should not be counted as being in an escalation bed.”

It comes as Co Fermanagh health campaigners prepare to present their ‘road map’ for services at SWAH directly to the department.

The document — produced by Save Our Acute Services (SOAS) — has identified around 20 recommendations, including the designation of the Enniskillen hospital as a ‘rural’ hospital.

The group has said the discussion paper will “significantly benefit the wider regional integrated surgical network” proposed by the department.