Pensioner fears delays for urgent medical scope as waitlist grows

Greg Twigger has been waiting three months for a colonoscopy, despite being considered an urgent case.

The 69-year-old has been happily living in Hobart for eight years, but recently he's considered leaving the state to get a timely medical procedure.

He returned a positive test from a routine bowel screening kit in August, and the wait for results has left him worried and out of options.

"I'm sick and tired," Mr Twigger said.

"I'm on the pension, but I can't wait."

A positive screening test means blood was detected, but it does not determine that a person has bowel cancer, or other health conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease.

For Mr Twigger, the result places him as a category 1 patient for a type of endoscopy called a colonoscopy — a day procedure using an internal scope to diagnose the cause of the bleeding — which is clinically recommended to be performed within 30 days.

After consulting with his doctor, Mr Twigger is considering paying out-of-pocket for private medical care.

"I've been told 120 days is a very, very common wait time," he said.

"This problem isn't going away until I cough up the thousands of dollars to get a private assessment."

Increased demand outstrips health response

While waitlists and the percentage of patients seen within clinically recommended wait times for elective surgeries in Tasmania are made publicly available, statistics for endoscopies are not.

The ABC requested the most recent data from the Tasmanian Health Department in mid-September.

The new data, which was provided to the ABC on Tuesday, shows the number of patients on the category 1 endoscopy list has grown from 2,878 in July 2024 to 3,864 in June this year.

The number of category 1 procedures being performed within that 30-day window has not kept up with the demand.

In July 2024, 27 per cent of the most urgent category of endoscopy procedures were completed within 30 days.

In June this year, just over 15 per cent of category 1 endoscopies were performed within the clinically recommended timeframe.

On Wednesday, state Health Minister Bridget Archer announced a $40 million investment over three years to improve endoscopy services across the state.

Ms Archer said the investment would deliver 9,000 endoscopies, with an immediate focus on the most urgent presentations and a goal of clearing the category 1 waitlist by the end of June 2028.

"That will be achieved by a range of things, possibly some additional Saturday lists as well as some opportunities for outsourcing as well,"

Ms Archer said.

Funding labelled as 'bandaid' fix

The health minister said the increase in demand for endoscopy services could be partially attributed to the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program, a federal initiative that sends free bowel cancer screening kits to Australians aged between 50 and 74.

"It hasn't come with any additional resources to states to respond to the outcomes of that," Ms Archer said of the program.

Tasmanian Labor MP Sarah Lovell said while the funding announcement would be welcomed by those waiting for a procedure, it amounted to a "bandaid fix" that she did not believe would clear category 1 wait lists.

She also questioned how the funding would address waiting times.

"This is an announcement that they have made because we had somebody speak out really bravely about their situation just a couple of months ago,"

Ms Lovell said.

Mr Twigger said the government's investment had not reduced the significant emotional distress he has experienced as he continues to try to secure a procedure.

"I saw my GP this morning, and they said, 'we're going to send that request through again. This happens all the time'," he said.

"It's category 1. Well, if that's the rating that I got, then God help the people in category 2 and 3."