The report does not "name and shame", but previous reports have shown the A&E at Northwick Park Hospital, Harrow, to be under major pressure.

A survey conducted by community health council representatives earlier this year, put Northwick Park at the top of a league table for long waits in hospitals.

Many patients waited for more than 24 hours.

The hospital was found to have 12 of the 60 longest waits in London and the South East in the survey.

It also had the second longest single wait.

Some of the cases highlighted included:

• an 86-year-old suffering from pneumonia waiting 23 hours 21 mins for a bed
• a 71-year-old woman waiting 22 hours 15 mins for a bed after suffering a fit
• a 42-year-old woman with chest pains who had spent 27 hours in casualty, but was about to go home as no bed was available

Ian Knowles told how his 93-year-old father John had been kept waiting for 35 hours before a bed became available on a ward.

He had suffered rib injuries after falling at his home in Edgware.

'Mayhem'

Ian Knowles said the closure of another casualty department nearby had put Northwick Park under "incredible pressure".

He described the scene when his father was admitted as "mayhem".

He said: "The staff were obviously doing their best under enormous pressure, but there were simply too many people."

A hospital spokesman said at the time: "The trust recognises that A&E is not the most appropriate environment for an overnight stay and apologises for any distress caused.

"However, we have to prioritise those in the greatest need of treatment."

There have been other instances of long waits at the hospital.

In February 2000, it was reported a 71-year-old woman with a broken pubic bone had been waiting for 40 hours.

After the CHC survey, the hospital said it had introduced measures such as a medical discharge lounge to free up ward beds more quickly, and an alert system to make sure doctors know if waiting times are increasing.