Centenarian battling to get hospital bed

FIRST ON 7: A 100-year-old man, suffering pneumonia, has been forced to wait two days for a proper bed at Blacktown Hospital.

The Nurses' Association is furious that it took much longer than the four-hour target to have him moved from emergency into a medical ward.

Norman James celebrated his 100th birthday in June - now he is sick and suffering chest pains.

"I'm struggling to breathe," he said.

He was diagnosed with pneumonia when he arrived at Blacktown Hospital's emergency department on Saturday afternoon, but he was told he could not be moved to a ward because there were no beds.

His daughters say they took shifts waiting with him over two nights, and became increasingly frustrated this morning when he still didn't have a bed.

"My main concern is he's not getting the specialised treatment he should get, he also is very uncomfortable and he can't sleep at night," Norman's daughter Tracey Steyn said.

"They're so grossly understaffed so we ensure there is a family member with my dad at all times."

The hospital would not speak to 7News on camera today, but after we contacted the department, Mr James was moved to a ward - more than 40 hours after he arrived at hospital.

"This person should have been to the ward within four hours, which is the Commonwealth standard, state agreed standards for emergency departments," Brett Holmes from the NSW Nurses' Association said.

In a statement the hospital says Mr James received the appropriate care, but it understands the family's concerns.