My husband had a "grumbly appendix", you're the only other person I've ever heard use that term.

We're in Canada so he had a similar experience to yours. He had to wait 8 hours in the ER waiting room before being seen by a doctor and then being sent home to await and appointment for an ultrasound. That took a few days and then it was back to the ER to wait again before he got checked in and received surgery the next day.