Ian Parker, 58, faced a troubling reality as he experienced chest pains, fearing each one could signal a heart attack. "You start second guessing every chest pain, you go, 'Oh, is this something?' because you're constantly told if something happens, go to [the emergency department]," he said. On June 6, he was referred for urgent coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery at St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney. His surgery was classified as category one, indicating it should occur within 30 days. His doctor emphasized the urgency, warning that Mr. Parker was at significant risk of a cardiac event without timely surgery.

Over the next three months, Mr. Parker's CABG was scheduled four times at St Vincent's. Two appointments were canceled in advance, while the other two were called off on the day of the procedure. "Two of those dates I went into St Vincent's, got there at 6:30 in the morning to the pre-operative area, was prepared for the operation, put on the gown, and then several hours after waiting I was told that they couldn't proceed with the surgery because there was no ICU [intensive care unit] bed available," he recounted. The repeated cancellations left him emotionally distressed.

A spokesperson for St Vincent's Hospital acknowledged the delays, stating, "We acknowledge Mr. Parker's surgery was postponed a number of times and sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and distress caused to Mr. Parker. The majority (93.5 percent) of St Vincent's Hospital Sydney patients receive their planned surgery within clinically recommended time frames."

While waiting for his surgery, Mr. Parker learned about Joshua Maxwell, another cardiac patient at Westmead Hospital, who had waited over 200 days for open-heart surgery, despite being classified as category two, which should occur within 90 days. "I saw that story that [the ABC] did about him and that's what triggered me. I'm going, 'Wow, am I in the exact same position here?'" Mr. Parker said. This prompted him to file a complaint with St Vincent's Hospital on September 17, expressing the distress caused by the delays and citing a lack of ICU beds due to staffing issues.

Within 30 minutes of his complaint, Mr. Parker received a response, and his surgery was rescheduled for just seven days later, which he successfully underwent. "My concern is if I hadn't written that letter, would I have had the surgery even now?" he questioned. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park also responded, apologizing for the delays and stating, "This is not the standard I want to set for people seeking help in NSW."

Mr. Maxwell expressed concern over the situation, stating, "I'm horrified to find out there are other patients that are waiting far longer than we're ever told. What's the point in giving us documents that tell us we're going to wait 30 days or 45 days and then have us wait 100 days or 200 days or more? How many people have died in that time? Do we have statistics on that?"

The delays experienced by Mr. Parker were not unique. A document submitted to the Special Commission of Inquiry into Healthcare Funding in 2025 indicated that St Vincent's Hospital's ICU capacity had led to numerous surgery cancellations. "Increasing access block in ICU has resulted in 100 cancellations of surgical patients requiring an ICU post-op bed during 2022-23," the document stated. These cancellations negatively impact patient outcomes and operating room utilization.

Minister Park noted that the NSW government had reduced overdue surgery waiting lists from 14,500 patients to about 2,500 since taking office in 2023. "When people don't get their elective surgery on time, that's always something I'm concerned about," he said. Following Mr. Maxwell's revelations, the minister announced a review of Westmead Hospital's surgical and screening waiting lists. He had also initiated a review of cancer surgery categorization at Orange Health Service.

Mr. Parker believes that all hospitals in the state should be examined for similar issues. "It definitely needs to go statewide because it's a problem," he said. However, Minister Park stated he does not support a statewide review at this time, emphasizing that he will continue to prioritize the issue of elective surgery waiting lists.