A Sydney father has described a painful ordeal after his appendix ruptured while awaiting a hospital bed at Campbelltown Hospital's emergency department, prompting renewed concerns about patient wait times. The man, identified as James, sought emergency care for severe abdominal pain.
After undergoing initial tests, James was not allocated a hospital bed for 16 hours. By the time he was diagnosed with appendicitis and advised of the need for surgery, approximately 30 hours had passed since his arrival. It was at this point that his appendix burst.
James recounted that he was in an offshoot of the emergency department under the care of a surgical team, awaiting surgery scheduled for the following day. He was preparing to be moved to another ward when his pain intensified dramatically. "I was waiting in my hospital gown when the pain got 100 times worse - I could not breathe," he told 2GB Breakfast host Ben Fordham. "I usually don't cry out in pain, but that was excruciating."
Following the rupture, James spent a week in the hospital being treated for peritonitis, a severe infection characterized by intense pain, fever, and abdominal hardening. The incident resulted in him taking five weeks off work. He believes his appendix would not have ruptured had he received timely treatment. He noted that appendectomy is typically a routine procedure.
James has formally requested an explanation from the hospital and is sharing his experience in the hope of preventing similar situations for others. He emphasized that he had no complaints about the care provided by the doctors and nurses, describing them as "fantastic and were doing the best they could."
Recent data indicates that one in 10 patients at Campbelltown Hospital wait up to 27 hours for admission from the emergency department. This situation persists despite a $632 million redevelopment of the hospital that included doubling the size of its emergency department.
NSW Health Minister Ryan Park stated that the proportion of emergency patients with immediately life-threatening conditions being treated on time at Campbelltown had improved significantly in the final quarter of 2025, rising from 36.8 percent to 59.5 percent. Campbelltown Hospital is one of the state's busiest and serves the Macarthur region, which is projected to experience substantial population growth over the next decade.
James expressed his dissatisfaction with the situation, stating, "It's unacceptable. Campbelltown Hospital has had a [$632 million] upgrade, then this happens."