Hospital sends boy home with pencil stuck in hand

A schoolboy in Britain spent two days with a pencil embedded in his hand after he was sent home from hospital.

Robbie Appleby-Socket was rusehd to Doncaster Royal Infirmary's accident and emergency department with the pencil stuck near the knuckles on his right hand.

He was told to go home and come back the next day for surgery but when he returned Robbie was turned away again with the hospital saying he was not scheduled for an operation.

Robbie's mother, Emma, drove several kilometres to another hospital, where surgeons operated immediately.

Mrs Appleby-Socket told The Daily Mail: "Robbie was in agony and the pencil was protruding from his hand but the staff at Doncaster Royal Infirmary didn’t seem that concerned.

"You would have thought it was something they could have done straight away but they just left the pencil where it was, put a bandage over it and said he would have to come back.

"I was disgusted at their attitude."

Mrs Appleby-Socket said doctors at the second hospital couldn’t believe that the pencil had been left for so long.

A spokesman for the hospital sent Robbie had been sent home with painkiller to rest and fast for the surgery.