![\"Henrietta](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/ad6900c08e1c63da0b4cf3ef0d03f64a1c4d476c.png\")
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Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n AAA<\/p>\n Victorians are waiting up to four years to access specialist care in the state\u2019s public hospitals, triggering a state government overhaul that will create regional waitlists and use AI to flag urgent cases.<\/p>\n Under the changes, which have been outlined in a new Department of Health report, more specialist appointments would be shifted to nurses to take pressure off doctors.<\/p>\n Review appointments deemed unnecessary would also be cut to improve access for patients in greater need, and virtual care would be expanded.<\/p>\n The plan is a response to an unprecedented influx of patients seeking public specialist care, driven by the cost-of-living crisis and soaring private doctors\u2019 fees.<\/p>\n The report highlighted the case of a four-year-old who waited more than 12 months for an ear, nose and throat assessment, while falling behind in their development. Rural patients spoke of having to drive five hours for an appointment, only to face car park fees of up to $70.<\/p>\n Health Minister Harriet Shing said too many Victorians were waiting too long or struggling to navigate the complex system.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s why this reform is vital \u2013 it will mean quicker access, clearer communication, and more options for patients and their families,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Rising fees for private specialists \u2013 which grew by 73 per cent between 2010 and 2025 \u2013 and the cost-of-living crisis have pushed more patients into the public system.<\/p>\n Related Article This has led to a surge in demand, with referrals to specialist care in public hospitals increasing by an average of 460,000 per year between 2020-21 and 2024-25, while appointments rose by 250,000 per year.<\/p>\n While most patients requiring urgent appointments were seen swiftly, some patients waited up to 1460 days, or four years, for a routine appointment at a vascular clinic.<\/p>\n \u201cExtended wait times are stressful and worrying for patients and can increase the risk of conditions becoming more complex and needing even more intensive and expensive care, including admissions to hospital,\u201d the report said.<\/p>\n The report also identified waste: 11 per cent of public specialist appointments (600,000 per year) were not attended.<\/p>\n Professor Ben Thomson, the Department of Health\u2019s chief surgical adviser, said there had been little reform in outpatient clinics over the past 80 years.<\/p>\n \u201cPockets of innovation and reform are happening in Victoria, but nothing centrally coordinated at present,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He hopes the changes improve wait times and access for patients.<\/p>\n He is particularly interested in the proposal to boost access to virtual care and allow patients to decide when and if they need a review appointment. Only one in five specialist appointments are for new patients, with the remainder reserved for review appointments.<\/p>\n He said many of these review appointments were booked by default, and some were unnecessary.<\/p>\n For parents caught in the middle of these delays, the wait can be agonising.<\/p>\n Lavengamalie Malagaoma became concerned about her son Michael\u2019s hearing when he was two years old. He had constant ear infections and wasn\u2019t responding to his name.<\/p>\n The mother of six from Kings Park in Melbourne\u2019s north-west took him to a local hearing clinic and he was told he had a blockage that needed to be seen by an ENT specialist. A referral was sent to the ENT, but four years passed, and the family never heard anything.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was frustrating,\u201d she said. \u201cHe wouldn\u2019t respond, he wouldn\u2019t listen. It was because he couldn\u2019t hear. He couldn\u2019t sleep because he was crying.\u201d<\/p>\n About two years ago, Michael\u2019s ear worsened and after he was taken to Sunshine Hospital\u2019s emergency department, he was referred to their Audiology Advanced Practice Paediatric Ear (AAPPEAR) Clinic.<\/p>\n The service employs audiologists who conduct diagnostic assessments of children\u2019s ears. Some children are discharged without needing to see an ENT specialist, while others are referred for routine or urgent appointments.<\/p>\n Michael was swiftly seen by the clinic\u2019s audiologists, who referred him to an ENT who recommended grommets. The grommets were placed in the now eight-year-old\u2019s ears about a year ago.<\/p>\n \u201cHe can hear better,\u201d Malagaoma said. \u201cHis confidence, friendships and learning has improved.\u201d<\/p>\n The recent state budget included $16 million to deliver 45,000 more specialist clinic appointments for children and young people.<\/p>\n Editor’s pick It also included $8 million to create and pilot a new service for GPs and patients to get specialist advice without the need for a referral.<\/p>\n Associate Professor David Fuller, chair of Paediatric Clinical Network, said it was common for children with learning, behaviour and development issues to wait more than 18 months for an initial assessment.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is challenging for clinicians when you get referrals and you can\u2019t see the patients any earlier,\u201d said Fuller, who is also a paediatrician at Barwon Health and a member of the blueprint\u2019s expert advisory group.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know the impact of an untreated condition can be long-term.\u201d<\/p>\n His health services recently started publishing wait times for clinics so patients have more transparency.<\/p>\n Related Article He said the blueprint would help maximise existing resources while redesigning the system so it worked better for patients.<\/p>\n Dr Philip Morreau, the president of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, welcomed the plan and said it addressed growing demand on the health system, increasingly complex patients and workforce pressures.<\/p>\n But he said it needed to be carefully implemented, with input from health practitioners, to ensure there was no compromise to patient safety, clinical quality and surgical standards.<\/p>\n \u201cReform of specialist care pathways should complement, not replace, continued investment in public hospital capacity, theatre access, infrastructure and the broader health workforce,\u201d Morreau said.<\/p>\n \u201cThese remain critical factors in meeting growing community demand for surgical care.\u201d<\/p>\n The Examine newsletter explains and analyses science with a rigorous focus on the evidence. Sign up to get it each week<\/a>.<\/p>\n Save<\/p>\n You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n![\"Lavengamalie](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/89676538e988efd5a1e80975c207159d13cf21b2.jpeg\")
Lavengamalie Malagaoma\u2019s son Michael was left waiting for years for specialist care to deal with a hearing problem.Simon Schluter<\/p>\n![\"Health](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/3279f04fcb4d2829fc4b86cbaca55637d9ad72eb.jpeg\")
Health Minister Harriet Shing says the changes will reduce delays for patients in need.Joe Armao<\/p>\n![\"Health](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/446bdfd2bb480b045a3a5eae7f9ee1af23382792.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Michael\u2019s](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/fcb573f2e96d59c31278175a3f317904a603c96e.jpeg\")
Michael\u2019s hearing improved after he was referred to a clinic through Sunshine Hospital\u2019s emergency department.Simon Schluter<\/p>\n![\"Patients](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/547bd242888c786d4d22b9a8bed3aeae0203ff58d7ae07d9a83f9ece5e86c40d.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Ezra](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/7ca71bc722b8a51f4e2fc3b2135f733796a20d01.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Henrietta](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1768828818_658_ad6900c08e1c63da0b4cf3ef0d03f64a1c4d476c.png\")
Henrietta Cook<\/a> is a senior reporter covering health for The Age. Henrietta joined The Age in 2012 and has previously covered state politics, education and consumer affairs.Connect via X<\/a>, Facebook<\/a> or email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":701881,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[256,254,255,64,63,105],"class_list":["post-701880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-artificial-intelligence","tag-ai","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-artificialintelligence","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/701880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=701880"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/701880\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/701881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=701880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=701880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=701880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}