waiting in pain for nearly a year. lucy morley—williams needs a hip replacement to treat her arthritis. this is limbo. my life is disabled, it's on hold. it's almost like a little grieving process every time it gets worse or you think, today i haven't got a full, you're always hanging on. i never like having my phone off just in case the hospital rings and i say, yes, i can be there whenever. so it's psychological as well. it's tiring, too. joanna crane is yet another of the many millions waiting for a routine operation. a sporty teenager, six years ago her heart was found to have a leaky valve, which was repaired with emergency surgery. in april this year, she was told the valve needed replacing but she is still waiting for an appointment. i think the difficulty is if the operation is delayed any further it may not be as successful