Children waiting months to see a pediatrician in South West

The mum, who requested not to be named, was taking her daughter to Vasse based Dr Nathan Smalley, until he passed away earlier this year.

Her seven year old daughter has level three autism and needs the controlled substance ritalin which needs to be co-prescribed by a paediatrician.

The mother told the Mail that she booked an appointment with a Bunbury paediatrician in August but the soonest she could see the specialist was May 2021.

To make matters worse, the mother said her general practitioner said they would not write the prescription despite her dilemma.

"My daughter has one tablet left and I have been told to take her to hospital if she suffers from withdrawals," she said.

"It is frustrating that a pediatrician has to write a prescription for medication my daughter has been on for two years.

"No one is focusing on the children, just what they are and aren't allowed to do."

The South West mum tried to get into a Perth paediatrician back in August but was told they were not accepting more patients.

Vasse MLA Libby Mettam wrote to WA health minister Roger Cook in August about her concern for Dr Smalley's patients and where they would be able to go.

In her letter she stated there were hundreds of families impacted by the lack of paediatric specialist services.

Minister Cook's responded in late September and said there were paediatricians based at the South West Health Campus in Bunbury but had minimal capacity to take on extra patients within their private rooms.

"However WA Country Health Service is working with them to identify short term solutions to enable urgent access to a specialist," he stated in the letter.

"Options being explored include increased access to specialist outpatient services at both Bunbury and Busselton."

He said the wait times for a developmental paediatric assessment in Busselton was four months and three months in Bunbury.

"This service does not incorporate management for children with neuro-behavioural disorders who require ongoing complex medical and medication management," Mr Cook said.

"WACHS - South West is however currently establishing a process for families who are deemed a high priority and urgently need specialist input to be able to access a paediatrician for review and advice."

The South West mum told the Mail that her GP referred her to the hospital this week, where she waited nearly two hours for them to say they couldn't help her.

A WA Country Health Service spokeswoman said it was aware of the impact on availability of non-government/private paediatric services in Busselton following the sudden and tragic passing of Dr Nathan Smalley.

The spokeswoman reiterated what minister Cook said about developing referral pathways and models of care for paediatric outpatients.

"Including the way we work with general practitioners to support families," she said.

"The organisation also provides financial support to eligible families who need to travel to the metropolitan area for complex medical issues and, where possible, utilises telehealth technology to offer care closer to home.

"Families in the South West should be assured that emergency care for their children is available 24/7 at WACHS hospitals and health services."

Ms Mettam said it was completely unacceptable that families in this region were not receiving the specialist paediatric support they desperately needed.

"Clearly there remains a gap in obtaining access to paediatric services and I will again write to the Minister urging him to resolve this."