Ana Amaral told the Guernsey Press that the cancellation had been ‘extremely distressing’.
Her mother and father had even flown to the island from Portugal to assist her after the operation.
She had already had the procedure delayed by three weeks. But she had attended all the pre-operative appointments and arranged time off work for the operation and recovery.
‘Being told, on the morning of the surgery, that the procedure could not go ahead – and that there was no clear indication of when it might be rescheduled – was extremely distressing,’ she said.
But on the morning that her admission was due, she received a phone call to say that the surgery had been cancelled owing to a lack of beds on Giffard Ward, where she was due to be admitted.
‘While I appreciate that healthcare systems face pressures, it is concerning that patients can reach the final stage of preparation for surgery, attend all required checks, take time away from work, and then have their procedures cancelled at the last moment due to capacity issues,’ Ms Amaral said.
‘I can’t begin to explain how frustrating a situation like this is when you have planned all your life and prepared yourself mentally and physically for a major surgery, and at the last minute it’s cancelled over the phone.
‘I think any patient deserves more respect and consideration than that.’
Associate director for acute care Gary Whitwam said this was an unusual occurrence and the hospital had not had to cancel planned surgery for some time.
‘But sadly that week [commencing 23 March] saw a spike in occupied beds.
‘We had to cancel two planned operations on Tuesday, and a day case procedure did not go ahead on Wednesday due to personal circumstances which meant an inpatient bed was required overnight.
‘We do everything in our power to avoid cancelling operations and we are truly sorry for patients when we have to do so.’
The hospital understood the preparation that goes into get ready for a procedure and the stress and upset when it is unable to go ahead.
He extended sympathies to those affected and said the PEH would look to reschedule their operations as soon as they could be arranged.
Mr Whitwam added that the PEH’s delayed discharge rates were much lower than those in the UK, with planning for discharge starting from the point of admission.
A multi-disciplinary team assesses all aspects of a patient’s ongoing care needs to make sure that they are discharged as promptly and appropriately as possible.
‘This allows us to ensure we maximise the number of unoccupied beds when available,’ he said.