A grandfather who is one of many waiting more than a year for an urgent operation has hit out at health chiefs for what he calls a “string of failures”.

Despite doctors assuring Raymond Hague, of Stratfield Road, Borehamwood, there was an 18-week waiting period to have his shoulder rebuilt, he has since been told it could take over a year to have the surgery at Barnet Hospital.

The 71-year-old tore all the muscles away from the bone in his right arm when on holiday in Jamaica in 2004, but physiotherapy has yet to provide any relief to his pain.

In December, days after his consultant placed him on the waiting list for treatment, he received a letter from Barnet Hospital advising him to phone the switchboard to book it in.

But he claims he was left horrified when a receptionist told him there “is no waiting list” and that he  should brace himself for a very long wait.

The father-of-two: “The pain is like someone has stuck a knife into my shoulder and keeps twisting it around. It keeps me awake at night so I get very tired during the day.

“I can barely even pick up a drink because it is just agony and aches all the time. My whole shoulder is a mess and I would really like it sorted soon.

“It riles me because I spent my whole life paying my way and my taxes and now I am being made to wait nearly a year. I can understand waiting lists are long but this is just ridiculous.”

Mr Hague, who had a triple bypass 14 years ago, said he has nowhere else to turn and is now calling on the hospital to advise him when his treatment could be.

His case echoes that of 71-year-old Christine Appleby, of Cranes Way, Borehamwood who struggles to walk but was also advised she would have to wait nearly a year for the urgent operation.

Last week, the Times Series covered a story about David Turner, of Arundel Drive, Borehamwood, who has also been waiting for the same operation since December.

Mr Hague added: “It really gets me down and what annoys me is that if you’re on a list, they should be able to tell you how far down you are on it.

“It makes no sense. My story and others show there are a string of failures in the hospital that should be sorted sooner rather than later.”

In a statement, the Barnet and Chase Farm NHS Trust apologized for the delay, citing emergency patients and a high demand during winter as having a long-term impact on planned admissions.

It added: “We are making every effort to increase our inpatient capacity over the summer and plan to reduce our waiting times considerably.”