About 65,000 residents in Canberra, which represents over 10% of the population, are on waitlists for publicly funded specialist appointments to determine further treatment needs. This includes patients like Billie Spencer's five-year-old granddaughter and Michael Hickey, who face extended waits that range from months to years. The Canberra Health Services is reviewing outpatient services and referral pathways to address demand. Families are opting for private healthcare due to the long wait times in the public system.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-09,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it -0.35, but all 3 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 67763: attributed speech only · logged 2026-10-09
In short:
About 65,000 Canberrans are on a waitlist to see a publicly funded specialist to find out if they must join another waitlist for surgery.
asserted
they → see → surgery
The figure, which has been publicly disclosed for the first time, means more than 10 per cent of Canberrans are currently waiting.
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cent → disclose → Canberrans
Canberra Health Services is undertaking a review, examining outpatient services and referral pathways to better understand demand.
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Services → undertake → demand
Canberra grandmother Billie Spencer says her five-year-old granddaughter will have to wait more than three years for a publicly funded specialist appointment, joining thousands on an invisible waitlist ahead of another inevitable waitlist.
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granddaughter → say → waitlist
Ms Spencer said her granddaughter suffers from excessive levels of fatigue, struggling to keep her eyes open at school and concentrate.
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granddaughter → say → school
"She needs to be assessed by a specialist, and we've had to wait months," she said.
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she → need → specialist
The family concluded they had no other choice but to choose private healthcare.
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they → conclude → healthcare
"I believe in quality healthcare access for everybody regardless of your financial status, and I feel it's so disgusting that this is where we're at," she said.
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she → believe → where
"[I can't] believe that children are having to wait, or parents, grandparents are having to pay huge amounts of money to have their health needs met.
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needs → believe → money
"I just feel really frustrated and really sad that our public health system is in this situation.
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system → feel → situation
Canberrans 'gobsmacked' by waitlists
Michael Hickey knows this story all too well.
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Hickey → gobsmacke → story
He has already waited more than four years to see a specialist and was "gobsmacked" when he was told he would have to wait another two and a half years.
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he → wait → years
Mr Hickey has been living with a genetic hand condition which gradually leads to a loss of function if not treated.
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which → live → function
He joined the public specialist waitlist expecting a fairly smooth process, but the reality did not align with his expectations.
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reality → join → expectations
"There's nothing but an acknowledgement to say, 'Thank you, we've received your note, your call is important to us, we'll get back to you,' and then crickets," he said.
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he → be → you
Mr Hickey said he did not think the wait time would be so long.
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time → say → ?
"Why aren't the figures made known up front?
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figures → make → front
Why isn't there a known waiting list so I can decide to go private if I wished to," he asked.
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he → know → ?
"I know it's expensive but I could've saved my pennies, paid cash, and had the operation and been done and dusted."
uncertain
I → know → operation
Mr Hickey said his injury was not debilitating, but he expressed frustration about it making hobbies and everyday activities "just that little more difficult".
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hobbies → say → frustration
'Big number' of people waiting for outpatient appointments
Mr Hickey and Ms Spencer's granddaughter are among about 65,000 people who are waiting for outpatient appointments across public hospitals in the ACT.
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who → wait → ACT
The figure, which Canberra Health Services (CHS) has disclosed publicly for the first time, means more than 10 per cent of Canberrans are currently waiting.
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cent → disclose → Canberrans
That is despite nearly 18,000 elective surgeries completed in Canberra last financial year, according to government data.
uncertain
That → complete → data
This week, CHS launched a review of specialist and outpatient services, following an independent inquiry into the territory's health system, which proposed 49 recommendations.
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which → launch → recommendations
CHS said its review will examine outpatient services and referral pathways to better understand demand.
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review → say → demand
CHS chief operating officer Alison Derritt said demand for outpatient services had been growing with a "big number" of people waiting for appointments.
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demand → operate → appointments
"We do know that this is a problem," she said.
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she → know → ?
"It is not an acceptable position for us to have people on a wait list for an extended period of time, and our clinicians take this very seriously, and I take this very seriously.
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I → take → this
"It's going to be one of those things that is a constant challenge for us … this is not something that will be done in a couple of weeks.
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that → go → weeks
"This will be something that will take us weeks, months, and possibly up to 12 months."
uncertain
that → take → ?
The health body said patients would be contacted in the next couple of months to assess their conditions and confirm whether they still required an appointment.
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they → say → appointment
For people like Mr Hickey and Ms Spencer's granddaughter, the wait for the wait could not feel longer.
uncertain
wait → feel → wait
The Aporia