Hobart mum watches daughter suffer while specialist surgery waitlists skyrocket across state

A Hobart mum has watched her daughter suffer in pain while she waits years to see a paediatric surgeon to remove her tonsils. DETAILS >>

For nearly three years, Shakoda Turner has watched her young daughter suffer in pain while she waits to have specialist surgery.

Her seven-year-old daughter, who was diagnosed with tonsillitis more than two years ago, was referred as an urgent case and should have had surgery within 30 days. Instead Ms Turner says she was recently told by the Royal Hobart Hospital her daughter faces another four years for the operation.

Ms Turner herself knows about the struggles of public waitlists. She said she had to wait 14 years before she could get her tonsils removed.

“I still have not received anything from the hospital,” she said of her daughter’s case.

“When I got in contact with the hospital, they told me that she has about four or five years to wait for her surgery but by then she will be 11 and the damage has already been done.

Shakoda Turner of Hobart. Her daughter aged 7 has been waiting for 2 years to have her tonsils removed and is looking at another 4 to 5 year wait on the public list for the surgery. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

“She was diagnosed with two speech disorders that could be temporary as long as the tonsils get removed and then she can do her speech therapy at school and get back to where she needs to be for that year. At the moment she is behind because she has had to miss out on quite a lot of school, because when she gets sick, she’s out for the week.”

Ms Turner said her daughter has been suffering from ear infections and is constantly getting sick because of her inflamed tonsils.

“Every angle that you can think of is affecting her,” she said.

“There’s nothing worse than having your child cry to you that she’s in pain and there’s nothing you can do.”

With the cost of living crisis, Ms Turner has not been able to afford private health insurance or look at going interstate for the care her daughter needs. She cannot afford it.

“With the way rent is going up, bills going up, I live week to week. I can’t afford to go out and get private health,” she said.

“There are kids out there that really need surgery and the (government) is more worried about a football team and a football stadium and I think that money could be going to the housing crisis that we’re in and for the hospital that really needs it.”

According to recent Tas Health data, child patients urgently needing to see an ear nose and throat (ENT) surgeon will have to wait 487 days.

Urgent patients will wait 906 days – nearly two-and a half years – for a neurosurgeon, 256 days to see a gastroenterology specialist and 262 days to see an orthotic prosthetic specialist.

Semi-urgent patients will have to wait 829 days to see a cardiology specialist in the Northern region, 1381 days to see a respiratory specialist and 1143 days to visit a urology specialist in the North.

The Department of Health secretary Kathrine Morgan-Wicks acknowledged the significant demands for outpatient appointments and surgical services.

“There is a shortage of ENT specialists across Australia, and Tasmania is not unique in this,” she said.

“In addition, ENT locums are also in extremely short supply.

“The Department of Health is taking action to address the wait lists and waiting times for both the elective surgery wait list and the outpatients wait list.”