The 61-year-old former Spurs, Manchester City and Liverpool midfielder drove to Blackpool Victoria Hospital A&E. He was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, underwent two surgeries to treat it, and is on the waiting list for further surgery.
Former England star Paul Stewart endured an agonizing wait for NHS treatment after suffering severe heart pain.
The 61-year-old former Spurs, Manchester City and Liverpool midfielder drove to Blackpool Victoria Hospital A&E. He was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, also known as AF, several years ago. He has undergone two surgeries to treat the condition and is on the waiting list for further surgery.
This causes the heart to beat irregularly, but is usually not life-threatening in itself. But Paul, now a safety activist, had chest pains so severe he feared he was having a heart attack. The article about his ordeal was published after the Mirror reported on Age UK’s scandal of long waiting times within A&E departments across the country.
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“I went to A&E around 8am and was supposed to have cardiac treatment, but I just had to wait. I could see my heart rate increasing so I said to the nurse, ‘What’s going on?’
“I was there late at night and the nurse said, ‘There’s no one to examine you.’ At first the pain in my chest was so bad I thought I was having a heart attack.”
“I went home because there was no one available on the cardiac team. It was atrocious.”
While in the hospital, Paul noticed that his heart rate had increased to about 156 beats per minute. He had severe chest pain again throughout the night and returned to the hospital at 7am the next day.
“I waited in bed for hours again,” Paul added. “In the end, I received the medicine in the evening of the second day.
“My heart rate is slowing down, so I’ll keep an eye on it until I can do another surgery. An electric shock will be used to stop the irregular heartbeat. I’m on the waiting list for that.”
Paul has worked tirelessly to protect young sports stars from abuse across the country. He was awarded the Sir Bobby Charlton Award by the Football Association for his contribution to football.
He will be presented with the honor ahead of England’s World Cup qualifier against Serbia at Wembley on November 13. Father-of-three Paul started supporting young footballers after we shared his harrowing story in November 2016. He revealed for the first time the horrific abuse he suffered at the hands of his junior coach, the late Frank Roper.
Maggie Oldham, chief executive of Blackpool Teaching Hospital, said: “It is inappropriate to comment on an individual’s care.
“We encourage anyone with concerns about their treatment to contact us through our patient care team.”
