An ambulance worker whose hernia operation was postponed after a six-hour wait has condemned the sacking of a surgeon at Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital.

William Long, 42, an A&E support worker for Oxfordshire Ambulance Service, suffered an umbilical hernia as he was lifting an elderly patient on to a stretcher.

His GP referred him for emergency surgery at the John Radcliffe but after a six-hour wait, he was sent home and told that the operation would be carried out at a later date.

Mr Long, who has worked for the ambulance service in Oxfordshire for six years, said he was amazed by the sacking of Simon Cole, one of two gastrointestinal surgeons who has been given three months' notice due to a reduction in gastrointestinal procedures, including hernia operations.

Mr Long, who lives in Partridge Place, Kidlington, said he has been forced to ask his managers at the Churchill Hospital for light duties until he is fit for heavy lifting.

The father-of-three, who lives with his wife Linda, and seven-year-old son Aaron, said: "I am very disappointed that the operation was not carried out because I am on the frontline with the ambulance service and I need to get back to work.

"If my hernia strangulates then I could suffer septicaemia and die within 24 hours, and I would like the operation to be carried out as soon as possible because, in my book, prevention is better than cure.

"I was lifting an elderly woman on to a stretcher about 10am on Monday and I felt something go. By 2pm the pain was unbearable and my GP referred me straight to hospital.

"A couple of student doctors examined me and pushed the bulge back in a bit but I thought I would be operated on that night and was surprised when I was told to go home.

"My managers have offered me a job in an office but I would go crazy.

"The doctor who saw me did say that if I had about £3,000 to £5,000 to spare I could go private and have the operation done within a week but I haven't got that kind of money," he said.

Elika Saedi, a spokesman for Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "We are concerned that Mr Long's description of his care is different to the doctor's account and to the medical notes made at the time.

"Any patient who requires an emergency hernia operation will always be treated.

"We would ask Mr Long to contact us directly with his concerns so that we can clear up this misunderstanding."

Up to 200 staff at city hospitals are likely to lose their jobs over the next few months as part of plans by the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust to reduce a projected deficit of £33m.