A pensioner was sent home from hospital alone despite suffering head injuries after a fall.

Reginald Canning, 76, arrived home with a battered face and feeling wobbly after being treated for injuries he suffered in a fall at a supermarket.

Mr Canning's wife, Dorothy, 83, who does not have full use of her hands, had no idea Mr Canning had suffered the fall until he walked through the door.

She said: "I got a terrific shock when I saw him. I had no idea what had happened.

"He was struggling and very wobbly. He was in no fit state to be walking on his own.

"He was in a terrible state. He was rocking with pain. I was trying to cope as best I could. I was scared stiff."

Mrs Canning tried to care for her husband for two days before calling her GP for help.

When the couple's doctor, Dr Sunil Emmanuel, discovered the extent of Mr Canning's injuries, he told hospital staff to readmit him.

Dr Emmanuel said he was surprised Mr Canning was sent home in his condition.

He said: "It was the fact he was sent home that got me.

"He was left in the care of his wife, who was not expecting him and did not know he was in hospital in the first place."

Mr Canning collapsed while shopping alone at a supermarket near his home in Ingram Crescent East, Hove.

Staff called an ambulance and he was taken to the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, where he was treated for injuries to the face and head before being released.

Mr Canning spent two weeks in hospital after being readmitted on his GP's instructions.

Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust said it could not comment on the specific details of the case.

A spokeswoman said: "We obviously take this seriously and if Mr Canning, or his next of kin, contact us we will undertake a full investigation."