"Concerns over theatre availability"

My child is currently waiting for a procedure she has regularly to manage her condition 

We had been told this would be due in January and if I hadn't heard anything by the new year I was to get in touch.

I did this and was told we were now looking at March due to lack of theatre availability and therefore lack of lists 

While I understand this is outwith the surgeons control it has significant implications for my child both physically and emotionally due to her anxiety around procedures and not knowing what is happening and when as well as socially due to the increasing and embarrassing symptoms she increasingly has when the procedure is due to get things back under control.

She has now also become unwell with an infection which I believe is due to the delay in treatment.

Adding to the stress of this, we recently had a call from the on-call surgeon, which I missed but  noticed within minutes and a voicemail was left asking if I could take my daughter in the next day for theatre due to a cancellation. The end of the voicemail said the surgeon would call me back in 10 minutes as they are aware sometimes people don't answer first time due to not being sure who is calling.

As a direct result of the comment about calling back in 10 minutes, I wrongly assumed they would wait until after trying again before offering the slot to someone else. Due to this I mentioned it to my daughter and began sorting things so we could be available while waiting for the call back. The call back didn't happen so I spent the next hour trying to get back in touch. After 2 hours the surgeon called back to say the slot had been given to someone else. While I understand the slots need filled I think care needs to be taken with messages left to ensure it is clear you will only be called back if they do not fill the slots elsewhere.

This surgeon also mentioned during the call back that they are so short of staff and struggling for spaces which I was already fully aware of and is why I tried so hard to get back in touch to ensure we had the slot.

Obviously this has increased my daughters frustration and anxiety as well as the stress of managing her increasing symptoms.

I have since been in touch with the secretary to establish if we are on track for a slot in March so I can reassure my daughter and have had no response regarding this. I would assume slots would already be decided for March or at least in the process and able to reassure me my daughter will be on the list even if only one list is offered again.

I understand the staffing and theare allocation is complex, however this is having a massive impact and where treatment is repeated and working  and delays impact on the effectiveness of it is deeply concerning as a parent.