A WOMAN patient of 94 sustained facial injuries after an elderly male patient attacked her in the middle of the night in her hospital bed.

Violet Coates’s family are upset the attacker was able to get unseen into her private room on a ward in Taunton’s Musgrove Park Hospital.

They claim the nearby nurses’ station in Sedgemoor Ward must have been unattended during the incident at 3am last Friday, but this has not been confirmed by the hospital.

Mrs Coates, who is recovering in Musgrove, suffered bruising to her neck and temples after the man tried to throttle her and a fat lip where he punched her in the mouth.

Hospital bosses, who say such incidents are “extremely rare”, have launched an investigation.

Police were called at 8.15am but no charges are likely, while the family say they were not informed until 9am.

Sarah Woodward, Mrs Coates’s granddaughter, said: “She was absolutely terrified – she told us she thought she was going to die without seeing her family again.

“I’m very angry because she should have been safe in her own room.

“We’ve been told the man’s actions were completely out of character. But there was no-one supervising.

“I understand she was asking for her family, but it took them almost six hours to call us.

“She was understandably very distressed.”

Mrs Coates, a widow for many years who previously lived in East Street, Taunton, had been in hospital since before Christmas and was due to be moved to a nursing home.

Musgrove chief executive Jo Cubbon said the incident is being taken “extremely seriously” and she was sorry to hear of the effect the incident had on both patients.

She added: “We are in close contact with the families involved to ensure they are kept fully informed.

“Our medical director, Dr Colin Close, has also met with the families to talk through their concerns and personally offer his support, as we appreciate both families will be anxious and concerned for their relatives.

“Keeping our patients safe from harm is a priority for all our staff and I’d like to take this opportunity to reassure our community that incidents such as this are extremely rare.

“We know that a lot of our patients are frail and elderly, and many are also confused who, when cared for in unfamiliar surroundings, can be disorientated and behave in an unpredictable way.

“Once our investigation is complete we will share the outcomes from our investigation, and any areas of learning, with the families involved.”