Sometimes waiting is not that bad, if you know the reason why. My mum had a non critical inguinal hernia, and needed surgery, but not right away. Her neighbour got the same, sudden and threathening, right after my mum had done the pre-op things. He got operated within a week, she would have to wait four to six weeks.
In the end, she had to wait ten weeks. But, she did get to hear the reason why. The mammogram van had been in the area of the hospital of her choice. And the number of women needing a breast operation was massive this time. Getting a woman with cancer treated before treating a woman with a non critical hernia makes a lot of sense. She could have opted for another hospital, but then she would have to start at the bottom of a list waiting four to six weeks.
I got my gall-bladder surgery late, simply because I chickened out. It was hospital proposing a way earlier date in the end, with the caveat that if there would be a person with cancer showing up, I would end up in the late scheme I had in mind. Because the surgeon operating on me was also the one doing certain types of cancer. Made sense, for me it meant I got operated sooner than I had the guts to get operated. And that was for the better.
I have seen no bill for my operation.
