By Peter Gould BBC News Online

Margaret has been waiting 15 months for her operation

Margaret Lucas was beginning to wonder if she would ever get her knee operation.

The Kent pensioner had been on an NHS waiting list for 15 months, with no indication of how much longer she would have to wait for surgery.

Then a few weeks ago, she was told she could have the procedure done in France, as part of a drive to cut waiting times.

"I was surprised," she said this week, as she headed off for the clinic at Lille where the operation is being carried out this week.

"I was very pleased because I had been on the waiting list for 15 months and there was no sign of having an operation."

No dancing

If I can get rid of the pain, I will go anywhere Margaret Lucas Patient

Margaret, who is 79 and a former Wren, lives in Deal. Since her knee started giving her trouble, she has had difficulty walking, and getting in and out of cars.

As a proud Scot, originally from Culloden, she was also upset to have been forced to give up Scottish dancing.

"I had to stop dancing six months ago, because my knee was too painful," she told the BBC.

"I have been walking around the house holding onto chairs, because it has been so painful. I like to move around and do things quickly, and it annoys me if I can't.

"I am delighted to be going to France...if I can get rid of the pain I will go anywhere."

Physiotherapy

Margaret has met the surgeon, who explained that he will be performing a complete knee replacement that should give her back her mobility.

But she has been told that after the procedure, she will need an intensive course of physiotherapy.

So now she is having the long-awaited operation, is she nervous?

"Not really," she laughed, "as long as I don't see any blood!"

Margaret is a widow, and during her stay at the French hospital, she will be visited by her son. It is too far away for friends to travel, but that will be a small price to pay for ending months of pain.

She says she has seen the clinic on television, and thinks it looks nice. She has been reassured to hear that the staff speak some English, and says she speaks "a wee bit" of French.

Virtual hospital

In fact, the clinic has a website that allows prospective patients to make a "visite virtuelle". With its stylish design and well-appointed rooms, it looks more like a hotel than a hospital.

But some people say the fact that patients like Margaret have to go abroad for their operations is an indictment of the current state of the NHS.

As the NHS can't cope at the moment, what else can they do? Margaret Lucas

"I think it's very sad, but it's probably only an interim measure, and it does release beds for other people," she said.

"As the NHS can't cope at the moment, what else can they do? There are people waiting and waiting, so I think it's a very good idea.

"I think as an interim measure it's about the only thing they can do. It does shorten the waiting list, and the fact that I am going to France gives a place for somebody else."

For Margaret Lucas, what matters most is ending the pain she has endured on the waiting list.

If she returns home with a new knee, she will be dancing with delight.