A SOUTHAMPTON woman told a doctor to 'go back to his own country' before spitting at a police officer and smashing up a hospital room after staff refused to give her a prescription for pain in her leg.

Victoria Callen, 26, of Cobbett Road in Bitterne, had been suffering with the pain at the beginning of November, and had gone down to Southampton General Hospital to see medical staff.

Southampton Magistrates Court heard that, after being refused a prescription for the pain due to a concern of a previous overdose, Callen told her doctor –who is Nigerian – to 'go back to his own country'.

Prosecuting, Natalie Angel told the court how Callen then proceeded to smash computer screens and tear plug sockets out of the walls, leaving the triage unusable for 'several hours'.

She said: "After being refused the prescription, the defendant became agitated and very angry. Another member of staff came in to see what was happening before she began to punch and break plug sockets and break the computer monitor.

"It left the triage unusable for several hours, which was of great detriment to the other people waiting to be seen.

"The doctor calls for security and as police arrive, Callen then spits at the officer, which disperses and hits him on the leg, to which he responds with 'that's disgusting' ."

Defence solicitor Gary Leonard told the court that in his ten years dealing with Callen, that she had 'never spoken to him out of turn'.

He said: "I am not trying to play down the impact on what she has done, but she has never spoken to me like that, and I am not someone who would tolerate that sort of language.

"She doesn't know why she said what she did, and doesn't consider herself a racist. She doesn't deal with stressful situations well."

After leaving court, Callen embarked on a foul-mouthed tirade to her defence solicitor that she 'wasn't co-operating' and that he could 'forget about dealing with probation' before storming out of the building.

Callen was given an eight-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months and ordered to pay a total of £393.89 in compensation to the officer and hospital.