2 days ago
Westmead Hospital patient waits more than 200 days for life-saving heart surgery
For more than seven months, Joshua Maxwell woke each morning wondering if this was the day he would die.
The 32-year-old writer and playwright from the NSW Central Coast was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect as a child, which only deteriorated with age.
In May 2024, he was booked in for an elective open-heart surgery at Sydney's Westmead Hospital after his body started rejecting medication needed to keep him stroke-free.
Mr Maxwell's surgeon classified him as a category two patient, meaning his surgery should have taken place within 90 days.
His surgeon hoped it would happen sooner because of the risk of what he described as a "lights out" stroke.
"His exact words were, 'I want you on and off my table within 30 days'. He said 'Westmead might take a bit, so let's say 45,'" Mr Maxwell said.
As the days and weeks ticked by, Mr Maxwell, who has autism, ADHD and a neurological condition, prepared for the worst.
He left his job, drafted a will, said goodbye to his family, and wrote letters to friends.
He even planned a funeral and booked a celebrant.
"I was in such a bad mental health state that I figured if I have everything planned, it won't bother my family if anything happens, apart from losing a loved one," he said.
Mr Maxwell said he repeatedly called the hospital, pleading for a surgery date.
"It was always a 'not yet, not yet, there's people in front of you'. It got to the point where I felt like I was just sitting in limbo, waiting by a phone for a phone call that just wasn't coming," he said.
In desperation, he reached out to his surgeon's office, asking if anything could be done.
"Unfortunately, this is the public system and is out of our hands. If you do notice any deterioration in your symptoms, please go to your nearest emergency department and let them know that you are on [your surgeon's] waitlist," his surgeon's office replied in an email.
The Western Sydney Local Health District (WSLHD), which is responsible for Westmead Hospital, declined the ABC's request for an interview.
In November 2024, six months after he was placed on the waitlist and with no clear idea of when his surgery would happen, Mr Maxwell wrote a heartfelt letter to his local MP, David Harris, pleading for help.
His health was deteriorating, and he was concerned that without the procedure soon, he might not live for much longer.
"Each day is a tightrope walk of symptoms and emotion while I wait for my phone to ring. My family and friends, and work are suffering because I have no control over anything," he wrote in his letter.
"I am deeply concerned about what might happen if I become critically unwell and surgery cannot be scheduled in time.
On January 23 this year, Mr Maxwell was finally booked in for surgery — 210 days after he was first placed on the waitlist.
He believes his letter to Mr Harris, who he was told discussed the issue with NSW Health Minister Ryan Park, was key to finally securing the date.
He isn't sure whether having his procedure performed within the recommended 90-day window would have prevented health complications, but he said the damage to his mental health had been overwhelming.
"They were traumatic, they were never-ending, they were filled with very little joy and positivity.
"It felt a lot of the time like I was tied to a set of train tracks, and I just had to hope that the one I was tied to wasn't the one the train was barrelling down."
Mr Maxwell said he had never been given an explanation as to why he had to wait so long for his operation.
Surgery bookings and schedules are managed by hospital staff who do not always have clinical backgrounds.
Mr Maxwell is sharing his experience in the wake of allegations of excessive wait times in cancer screening procedures at Westmead Hospital.
Sources have told the ABC that the WSLHD's CEO, Graeme Loy, was asked to step down from his role by the NSW Secretary of Health, Susan Pearce, last week, ahead of a vote of no confidence by medical staff at Westmead Hospital.
NSW Health is conducting an independent review into cancer wait times, but the investigation has no set timeline.
Jenny King, the deputy chair of the Westmead Medical Staff Council, said other departments at the public hospital were impacted by lengthy wait times.
"These things happen because there are inadequate staff to deal with the administrative load, the paperwork and patients may be forgotten," she said.
She met with Mr Park on Wednesday to discuss the growing crisis but said more funding for the Western Sydney region was desperately needed.
"It's an area that has a lot of health problems. We aren't staffed, we aren't funded, we are not resourced for the demands of our community," she said.
In a statement, a WSLHD spokesperson sincerely apologised to Mr Maxwell "for the delay in receiving his surgery".
"We understand how challenging it can be when patients wait longer than they expect for their procedure," the spokesperson said.
"We acknowledge that there were shortcomings with our communication to Joshua about his surgery."
The spokesperson said, as of June this year, there were no overdue patients requiring heart surgery.
Mr Maxwell has another two months of recovery before he can return to work, but the delay in his surgery has also affected the ongoing treatment of his neurological condition.
He's speaking out because he's concerned other patients attending Westmead Hospital could die while waiting for surgery.
"I just don't know how I'm going to learn how to trust that system that was meant to protect me and make me better again," he said.
