Mr Horsburgh's long journey with his left hip and knee replacement started in 2019, but it wasn't until a that fateful pool session in 2020 Mr Horsburgh and his therapist knew something wasn't right.

"I should have been further along in my recovery than I was," he said. "The shaft that was put into my hip had popped out and no one knew. That was what was holding me up. I had been going to the pool to get things going after my knee surgery and it wasn't working because my hip had jumped out. I overrode the pain. I was taking Panadol but my surgeon said I shouldn't have so I just gave it up. My body must had rode through the barrier again."

While undergoing therapy at the pool Mr Horsburgh was struggling to get out one day due to the unknown issues with his hip.

"My toenail has hit the bottom step and it bent it back and started bleeding," he said. "I found out I got an infection from the pool. That held me out of hospital for awhile to go in and fix my hip. I was advised I had to be rid of this infection to have the operation. I ended up having three infections."

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It was then things turned south for Mr Horsburgh.

"I woke up one morning in all wet and the bubble where the bug had tried to eat through my flesh had burst and I could almost put my fist through a hole that was in my leg," he said. "They were able to get rid of two of the infections but not the last one. It was very, very, very aggressive; infectious disease was involved, my surgeon was involved. There were talks all the time about what they could do otherwise there was a possibility I could lose my leg, from the hip."

Mr Horsburgh said his surgeon showed him scans and X-Rays where the top of his hip joint and top of his leg bone to his hip was gone.

"This bug had chewed it away," he said. "I went into hospital and the bug was still there and they were fighting it with all these tablets and drugs that were imported from Europe. The damage it did to the hip you couldn't believe. It made a mess. They still don't exactly know how the bug got there and if it was on someone. It was new for the infectious disease experts as well...I spent five months in hospital, fighting the infection."

When it came time for Mr Horsburgh's hip to be operated on again to correct any damage done before and after the infection, he said he was really hopeful.

"I was told they had this solution that they would use to wash the leg out that would kill any bugs that were in there," he said. "A quick operation turned into a seven and a half hour ordeal where I lost three litres of blood and they lost me for a bit. Luckily they got me back and after three days in ICU afterwards on a heap of machines and drugs I got back to the ward."

Mr Horsburgh said the journey didn't end when he left hospital and that he was grateful for the support from his wife Cheryl and daughters.

"I slept in the recliner for about a total of two years," he said. "My family were amazing on getting me back on my feet and making sure I am still able to do the things I love to do today."

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