Tasmanian State Schools Parents and Friends  president Jenny Eddington said yesterday that schools did not have  child and family services nurses available to do the checks.

The last of the state's school nurses, who took responsibility for student health checks, retired earlier this year.

Ms Eddington said Children's Minister Michelle O'Byrne had indicated that the prep checks would continue in the short term when she announced changes to child health checks earlier this year.

Those changes will see the last universal check done at three years old.

On Tuesday it was revealed more than 860 child health nurse appointments  with new mothers and babies  had been cancelled statewide because of staff shortages.

Australian Nursing Federation state secretary Neroli Ellis said  the appointments had been made by mothers with issues like feeding, behavioural issues and sleep problems.

Ms O'Byrne confirmed cancellations had been higher than the department would have liked.

Mrs Ellis said another two child health nurses had been appointed since the nurses' union raised the matter with the government, but the service was still understaffed because of budget cuts.

Tasmanian Child Health Association spokeswoman Christine Minchin said yesterday she was appalled at the high number of cancellations.

``It's very worrying for parents _ it's hard enough to get to appointments with young children without them being cancelled in such numbers,'' Ms Minchin said.

She said  many of the issues for which new mothers sought help could not wait a fortnight for another appointment.

Ms Eddington said the parents and friends group was worried that in the changeover to the new system of checks there would be groups of children who would miss out altogether because they would be older than three and would already have missed out on the prep checks at school.