A man admitted to hospital with appendicitis was not operated on for almost three days because surgeons were too busy.

David Waterhouse had been waiting at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton for about 64 hours before he finally had surgery.

His family says the length of time Mr Waterhouse had to wait was unacceptable.

They are calling for three operating theatres to be opened at weekends instead of the current two to cope with demand.

Hospital bosses say Mr Waterhouse had been monitored closely throughout his stay and had been pushed down the list because more critical emergencies had come in.

Mr Waterhouse, from Wilderness Road, Hurstpierpoint, fell ill with crippling pains in the early hours of Saturday, August 8.

His wife Rebecca, 43, took him to the accident and emergency department at about 3am.

Mrs Waterhouse said: “We saw a doctor who diagnosed acute appendicitis and a surgical team saw him at 9am.

“They wanted to operate on him that afternoon but there were a lot of emergencies coming in and he ended up going further down the list.

“The surgeons were having to prioritise these cases and I understand that but when it stretched on until Monday I was starting to ask questions.

“By the time he was operated on he was very unwell.

“As far as I am concerned he was put at risk. Appendicitis is a serious condition that could change at any time.

“The longer he was waiting to have his operation, the longer he was risking the appendix rupturing.

“We are in no way complaining about the treatment itself but I think it would be a good idea to open up an extra operating theatre so people don't have to suffer.”

Mr Waterhouse, a mortgage adviser, is now recovering well at home.

He said: “It certainly wasn't a pleasant way to spend the weekend although I'm feeling better now.

“It shocked me when I realised how long I was going to have to wait.

“I understand that more critical cases have to be dealt with but things could have gone wrong for me at any time.”

Mrs Waterhouse said she would be writing to Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust chief executive Duncan Selbie.

The trust said having two operating theatres open was normally enough to cope with demand and Mr Waterhouse had been closely monitored throughout.

Mr Selbie said: “We are pleased that Mr Waterhouse’s surgery was successful and that he is making a good recovery at home.

“His procedure was initially scheduled for Saturday afternoon but was delayed until Monday due to the admission in the meantime of patients in need of more clinically urgent procedures over the weekend.

“We operate two theatre lists every weekend for trauma and emergency surgery.

“Given the unpredictable nature of emergency work, unfortunately a minority of patients do sometimes have to have their surgery rescheduled as more urgent cases arrive and take precedence. “These decisions are made exclusively by doctors and that is in our view right and proper.”