Sarah Taylor, 12, who lives with autism, has been on a 90-day waiting list since September.
Sarah currently experiences severe pain when she walks and requires an operation to lengthen her calves and realign her ankles.
Sarah’s mum, Kym says it is distressing to see Sarah suffer.
“It’s quite upsetting to see her like that.. because she can’t communicate that she needs help,” she said.
“With day-to-day, she is unable to walk a lot of the time.”
Australian Medical Association Dr Omar Khorshid said there was currently a crisis of availability in the sector.
“They cannot access the care that they desperately need and their doctor has said your surgery needs to be done within 90 days or it’s going to have a negative impact,” he said.
“We just haven’t seen any recognition of just how big this problem is right now for Victorians.”
Kym said they were originally told the surgery would come by December.
“Now we’re in April,” she said.
“They’re saying minimum of six months more… I don’t know how long she can cope with that much pain.”
“It is hard for her and is hard for us to see her like that.”
Kym said speaking up now wasn’t just to advocate for her daughter, but to advocate for many other parents who are in a similar position.
“Sarah’s not the only one… she’s not the only one,” she said.
Source: 9News
