A former Sergeant with the Black Watch regiment says he has “no real quality of life” after being forced to wait more than a year for a routine operation.
John Brown, 79, was told in March last year he would require surgery for an enlarged prostate, which makes him need to use the toilet every few hours.
NHS Grampian’s target waiting time for such procedures is 18 weeks.
But Mr Brown, who served in Cyprus, Germany, North Africa and Northern Ireland in a 22-year army career, has been told he will now need to endure his condition until at least May.
The 79-year-old veteran, who lives in Potterton, said: “If I’m going out with my wife, or I’m going shopping, I have to make sure I’m near a toilet because when I’ve got to go, I’ve got to go.
“There’s actually been a few times that I’ve wet myself, and it’s embarrassing, it’s damned embarrassing.
“I’m up at least every two hours every night to go to the toilet, which always wakes up my wife, and it takes a long time to try get back to sleep.
“I’ve got no real quality of life, not really.”
A spokesman for NHS Grampian said: “We’re sorry to hear about this patient’s experience and regret he is having to wait longer than we would like.
“We cannot comment on individual cases publicly due to patient confidentiality. In general terms, our services are experiencing higher demand than ever before due to our increasing and ageing population.
“That poses challenges, however we would like to reassure people that we’re committed to seeing those in need of urgent treatment as a priority.
“Unfortunately this does mean that people with more routine conditions sometimes have to wait longer.
“We understand that this can be frustrating, and would like to remind people that if their condition changes significantly, then they should see their GP so that they can be reassessed where necessary.
“We also encourage anyone who has comments or concerns about our services to contact our feedback team on 0345 337 6338 who will be able to look into their individual case.”
A spokeswoman for Prostate Scotland said: “There is a general patient treatment times guarantee of 12 weeks for inpatient treatment.
“We understand that the NHS is under pressure and the challenges it faces.
“We also appreciate the difficulties that men diagnosed with an enlarged prostate can face on a daily basis, and the effect it can have on their lives.”
