King Edward VII Memorial Hospital and Bermuda's nursing homes are bursting at the seams with elderly patients while an empty hospital sits dormant.

And it is sending nursing home administrators' blood pressure soaring while the problem escalates.

One nursing home matron, who asked not to be identified, blasted the Government for not using the empty hospital on the former US Base to house the elderly.

"We have an empty hospital on the base,'' the woman argued. "We need to use it, it's just sitting there.'' "I see our elderly people being neglected after they have paid their dues, worked hard and contributed to the pension scheme. And what's their reward, they're being ignored.'' The row erupted after the hospital admitted it was jammed with elderly patients with nowhere to go.

The shortage of available beds prompted some non-urgent surgery to be cancelled.

Bermuda Land Development Company spokesman Don Grearson yesterday welcomed the idea of using the base hospital for senior citizens.

"We would love to receive a proposal from either the King Edward or anyone who has an idea for the base hospital,'' Mr. Grearson said. "But we have not received a proposal from the King Edward.'' He added: "If the hospital has a need to expand they should use it for what ever purposes they need it for. Anyone who has an idea how the base hospital should be used should approach us about it.'' The nusing home matron also expressed outrage over the lack of initiative by the Government.

"This really upsets me,'' she said. "This is not a problem that has just arisen over night. They aren't doing anything.'' The woman claimed that for the last three years, Government had been dragging their feet on new legislation which will regulate nursing homes.

"They hassle those that already have homes set up and they put up blocks to those who want to start homes with their rules and regulations,'' she alleged.

"They have been writing new rules up forever.'' The Health Department's Coretta Saunders told The Royal Gazette that the new legislation on nursing homes was forthcoming.

"Legislation is pending,'' she said. "It's before the Cabinet.'' Meanwhile most of the Island's nursing homes have reached capacity and have seniors on waiting lists. This has caused a backlog of elderly patients at the hospital.

"Most of the nursing homes are full, '' said Dorrie Bennett, matron of the Sunny Vale Resting Home in Paget. "We are full at the moment.'' Nursing home woes were further hindered with the current renovation of the Matilda Smith Williams Home in Devonshire.

The home's chairperson, Lovette Brangman, said yesterday the home has only housed four people during their renovations.

"This is a real problem and it has grown and gotten worse,'' Mrs. Brangman said. "At the moment we are closed because we are in the midst of a $2.1 million renovation. But we hope to reopen this summer.'' She said prior to the renovation project the home had an arrangement with the hospital where they took in elderly patients who were not bed-ridden.

"We would take them if they were somewhat mobile,'' Mrs. Brangman said.

"When they needed more care, they went back to the hospital.'' She said the home planned to return to the same arrangement once the first phase of the renovations were completed.

"The expansion will continue, but phase one will be completed soon and we will take in 22 people,'' she added.

And once the entire project, which includes the construction of a community room and examination rooms for the elderly, is completed, the home will be able to care for 38 people.

HOSPITAL HOS SENIORS SR