Martlesham man's four-year wait for hernia surgery

Marcus Mansukhani, 48, has now been living with a hernia for five years. He explained that when measured, the hernia now protrudes between 10 and 11 inches. 

“I’m in a huge amount of chronic pain,” said Mr Mansukhani, who works for BT. Mr Mansukhani lives with his husband in Martlesham. 

“I’m having to use a power chair now, which I didn’t have to use before.  

“Everything is being impacted – my personal life and my work life.” 

Marcus Mansukhani has been waiting for a hernia operation that was first scheduled in 2019. Image: Marcus Mansukhani (Image: Marcus Mansukhani)

Marcus Mansukhani is waiting for surgery at Ipswich hospital. Image: Newsquest (Image: Newsquest)

Mr Mansukhani was first diagnosed with a hernia in 2018 and was approved for surgery at Ipswich hospital in early 2019.  

He said that he saw a surgeon for an assessment and a pre-op, before returning to his GP for further tests. After hearing nothing more from the hospital about a date for surgery, he contacted his GP who confirmed that he had been “passed back” to their care.  

When the pandemic hit in 2020, many elective procedures were delayed, including Mr Mansukhani’s. He has now had multiple pre-ops cancelled and has been told he may have to wait until summer next year for his operation.  

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However, Mr Mansukhani said that the longer the wait continues, the more his life is being negatively impacted. 

“I pretty much keep myself to myself while I’m waiting for surgery,” he said. “I’m not as active, and I’m not going outdoors as much as I used to,” he said. 

“I’m using a power chair to get around, so I can’t manage anything more than a local trip.” 

He said that his experience has caused him to lose faith in the NHS. He is now exploring private treatment in Lithuania, or else in Germany, France or the Netherlands, and has started a fundraiser in the hope that the community will rally around him to help him pay for surgery. 

“I have no problem with any one person in the NHS, but it’s in such a bad position of being underfunded and understaffed,” he said. 

“It’s a failing institution, if things keep on the way they are going. There will need to be a huge amount of reform and improvements to get it back to where it was.  

“I grew up with a very reliable and trustworthy NHS. But I can’t say I have that same feeling now.” 

This news comes after new figures show that more than 30,000 patients at Suffolk and north Essex hospitals have waited longer than 18 weeks for routine treatments. 

Neill Moloney, deputy chief executive of ESNEFT. (Image: Archant)

Neill Moloney is deputy chief executive of East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust, which operates Ipswich hospital.  

He said: “We’re very sorry to hear about Mr Mansukhani’s situation and we have been in contact with him to discuss his concerns. 

“We are committed to seeing all our patients as quickly as possible and our teams have been working extremely hard through some challenging circumstances. To reduce the backlog, we have increased our capacity and have been running additional clinics and prioritising patients based on their clinical need, which is in line with national guidance for all NHS trusts. 

“Our numbers of patients waiting has grown [as of March 2023] by 44% since February 2020 compared to 63.1% nationally. 

“The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted waiting times and we have also seen unprecedented pressures on our services during the winter period, which has also affected our ability to carry out elective care. 

“We recognise demand is incredibly high and we apologise to anyone who has experienced a delay.” 

To donate to Mr Mansukhani’s fundraiser, visit: www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/for-inguinal-hernia-surgery-after-nhs-failed-me