An Oxford woman has travelled to Lithuania for a hip replacement after waiting more than two years on the NHS - and being quoted £20,000 to go private locally.
Karen Rogers, 65, has degenerative arthritis and was suffering with severe hip pain.
After having one hip replaced abroad in February, she said she will do it again for her left hip.
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A year after she was first told in 2022 she would need a replacement on her right hip, Ms Rogers' pain hip deteriorated to the point she stopped working and moved in with her partner for 24-hour care.
Eventually, at the start of 2024, Ms Rogers got a letter from the hospital confirming her hip replacement for February but after going in for pre-surgery tests she was told it had been cancelled, she claims.
Ms Rogers started looking into going private but was quoted £20,000 for an operation with no follow-up treatments.
She then came across Nordorthopaedics Clinic, Lithuania, who quoted her £8,500 for the operation as well as flights, surgery and nine days in rehabilitation.
"Don't get me wrong the NHS is a wonderful organisation," the wedding celebrant from Oxford said.
"It is not the fault of the NHS that is it in the situation that it is now.
"In comparison, when you look at the way the clinic in Lithuania is run they wait no more than six to 12 weeks for surgery.
"As it stands I know I will need my left hip replaced and I can't even get an appointment with a consultant."
After a year waiting for the operation in the UK, Ms Rogers went back to her GP who phoned the consultant at the hospital to make her case urgent.
After chatting on social media to others who had been to the Lithuanian clinic she booked her surgery for February 2024.
In total, Ms Rogers waited one year and eight months from being told she needed surgery to being given a date.
The Trust states that the maximum wait for routine orthopaedic operations is 65 weeks.
The NHS waiting time starts from when the hospital or service receives your referral letter, or when you book your first appointment through the NHS e-Referral Service.
"Our teams continue to work extremely hard, including carrying out additional activity at weekends, to ensure our patients are seen in a timely manner," she said.
“We understand the impact long waits for surgery can have on our patient’s lives and apologise to anyone awaiting treatment who has had to have their planned care rearranged due to either operational pressures or industrial action.
"There continues to be high demand for our services, especially for urgent and emergency care, and we will continue to try and minimise the impact unplanned care and industrial action has on patients waiting for a planned appointments or surgery.”
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