Hospital care is at its worst when wards are most under pressure, it has been revealed.

A skeleton staff at weekends means there are fewer doctors to deal with accident and emergency patients.

While many doctors spend the weekends at home, casualty nurses are left to bear a large responsibility for the care of patients.

Dr Atul Sinha, a consultant gastroenterologist at Worthing Hospital, made the revelation at a hearing into the death of Brian Sexton, the brother-in-law of Hollywood star Liam Neeson.

He said: "Yes, it is the case that on weekends doctors have to manage several wards with several patients on them.

"But it is normal process for nurses to report back to doctors if there is a problem.

"I'm afraid we are in a system where there are not great numbers of people available."

There were 483 attendances to accident and emergency in the Adur, Arun and Worthing Primary Care Trust area from April to June this year, compared to 406 in the first three months of the year.

Dr Sinha said more doctors were available on the intensive care unit at weekends but not all patients would be considered suitable for care on this ward.

He said: "On the wards at weekends cover is thinner than we would like it."

Mr Sexton, retired headmaster of Our Lady of Sion School in Worthing, was having a drain inserted into his liver when a nick on a tumour caused catastrophic bleeding which led to his death on June 19.

His widow Bernadette, 55, said: "By Friday evening he had deteriorated dreadfully. The last 36 hours were very uncomfortable for him and we think this could have been avoided.

"The doctors were very few and far between, although the nurses were doing their best.

"We felt that doctors were thin on the ground at the time he needed them most."

Dr Alastair Maclean, who performed the procedure on Mr Sexton, told the inquest he was not aware of any problem after the operation and Mr Sexton was left in the care of nurses when he went home "because it was Friday".

Jeannie Baumann, director of clinical services for the Worthing and Southlands Hospitals NHS Trust said: "Medical staffing is reduced at weekends. That is the case in all hospitals.

"Our staffing levels are audited by both the Strategic Health Authority and a number of royal colleges every year. We are checked for staffing and also against the European working times directive.

"We as a trust have changed to shifts rather than on-call and that, in fact, means we have more doctors on the premises as a result."