You’d be surprised how many people waste NHS time with this entitled attitude. “Would not wait” is a sadly used to often reason for cancellation on the day and results in wastage annd elongated waits. Just FYI, if you refuse to wait you’ll go back to bottom of the waiting list. Though to be fair, the biggest reason for cancellations on the day is patients not fit for surgery (coughs/colds/ not followed pre op advice re meds), would not wait is definitely not the majority. But you do see it more in the simpler cases/LA/injections, rather than those waiting for say hip surgery or major abdominal surgery.
conversely, many people wait all day if that’s what it takes as they’re so desperate to be treated. Issues come up some times on the day meaning the list don’t go to plan. For example, with the hot weather recently, one of our theatres broke and the only space we had was in the afternoon, so people had to wait. Cancers were on the morning lists and we couldn’t cancel them, just because someone else had paid their taxes/fasted and therefore should go first.
i absolutely get your frustration and anxiety re list order, wait time and fasting. Not much worse than being hungry! So many factors determine list order and it quite often changes on the day: kit availability, anaesthetist caught in traffic so start off with the LA cases instead, urgent case being added.
if it’s a morning session though you’ll know well before 2 if you’re being cancelled - more like 10:30/11 at the latest.
Wish you all the luck and hope all goes to plan and you are first on the list. There’s more adults/non-diabetic, non transport patients so chances are you’d be really unlucky to have that combo on the same list as you