An under-pressure accident and emergency department where people have died while waiting for a bed has been given an average satisfaction rating by patients.

The Argus revealed last month that as many as 40 people at once received treatment in a walkway at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, because of a lack of room in bays and cubicles.

A doctor from the emergency department told this paper people have even died in the corridors while awaiting treatment.

The department has now been given an average satisfaction rating of 7.6 out of ten by a sample of 214 former patients.

It scored an average of 8.6 out of ten for patients feeling they were treated with dignity and respect.

This rating contrasts with comments from accident and emergency doctor Alison Beadsworth who recalled seeing an elderly man lying in a bed in his underpants with his hospital gown undone.

“He was as old as my father. I would be appalled if that was my dad,” she said.

Dr Sean O’Kelly, the Care Quality Commission’s chief inspector of healthcare, said staff are working extremely hard amid challenging circumstances.

However, he added: "We cannot afford to ignore the long-term decline shown in relation to issues like waiting times, information provided when people leave to go home, access to pain relief and emotional support."

The sample patients gave an average score of 4.9 out of ten regarding the length of time they waited to be examined at the Royal Sussex A&E.

READ MORE: NHS doctors say patients dying in corridor of Royal Sussex in Brighton

A University Hospitals Sussex spokesman said: "Our emergency department colleagues do a fantastic job of providing urgent and compassionate care to patients across Sussex. This is despite the very difficult circumstances our staff often face responding to the ever-rising demands upon them.

"We know some of our facilities need improving and our £48 million planned redevelopment of the emergency department at the Royal Sussex County Hospital will allow us to create a better and safer place for patients to be treated and a healthier and more rewarding place to work."