He struggles to walk around his small flat and has to take paracetamol regularly for the pain, but he said he does not get upset about it any more. "There's no point."
Mr Smith puts the postponement down to a shortage in beds in the HDU and said he has heard about others who have been in a similar situation.
In an email to Associate Minister of Health Jo Goodhew and Wairarapa and Hutt Valley District Health Board chief executive Graham Dyer, he outlined his concerns about the HDU.
"Patients are admitted for pre-booked invasive surgery then discharged whenever an accident victim has the first call on a vacant HDU bed.
"Wairarapa surgeons and their patients deserve better," Mr Smith said.
Mr Dyer said the HDU has six beds and cares for about 1400 patients a year. "This number of beds was nationally and internationally benchmarked when the hospital was built in 2006, and is appropriate for a population our size," he said.
Information obtained under the Official Information Act showed there were a total of 20 complaints made about service in the emergency department and the HDU last year.
"There have been no complaints about HDU services this year, and only this current inquiry," Mr Dyer said.
He said there were a number of reasons that could lead to the postponement of an arranged surgery.
"Postponement can occur if theatre time or available beds are being used by people who present with acute urgent needs, or a required resource is not available. When a procedure is postponed, every attempt is made to rebook that patient as soon as possible.
"We understand that postponement is disruptive for patients and their families, but patient safety is always our prime concern. So if the procedure cannot be carried out safely for any reason, the operation will be postponed."
He said there had only been one instance this year of surgery being postponed because there was no HDU bed available for post-operative care. My Dyer said the process for rebooking Mr Smith's surgery was under way.
