In 2020, doctors at the Launceston General Hospital confirmed a cyst was growing at the base of Kerry Neilson spine.

After a GP identified the cyst, Mr Neilson was referred to the LGH for a consultation with a surgeon who advised surgery would be required to remove the lump.

"I went to the LGH and had a consultation with a surgeon, I had an MRI shortly before the middle of August and then I got a letter saying I was on the category two semi-urgent waiting list on August 20, 2020."

The 70-year-old retiree said he had not heard anything back from the LGH since his initial appointment was made - despite checking in regularly.

"I ring them every now and again to make sure I am still on the waiting list," he said.

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Mr Neilson said with long wait times between diagnosis and surgery, there was a disconnect between what is considered elective surgery to the health system and essential surgery to patients.

"This cyst has tentacles that are growing very close to my bowel and could turn into a serious situation," he said.

"I cannot travel very far, if I go to George Town to visit my son it consists of four stops for relief.

"I'm in constant pain, cannot sit or stand for any length of time and have trouble sleeping."

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According to the Tasmanian Health Service, 1330 people are on the category two waiting list for elective surgeries at the LGH, with patients waiting 239 days beyond the clinically recommended timeframe of 90 days to be seen.

Following a call by the Australian Medical Association to develop a national plan to manage the growing backlog of surgeries, AMA spokesperson Dr Jerome Muir Wilson said referring to the surgeries as an elective downplayed the severity of significant conditions.

"Politicians or bureaucrats call it elective surgery, but if you've got someone waiting for a knee replacement and they can't work then we see it as essential surgery," he said.

He said delaying some surgeries could have long-term impacts on patients and place a further strain on health services.

Mr Neilson said he was speaking up on behalf of everybody on the waiting list who was experiencing a diminished quality of life.

"It's shocking, you just get shoved into a pigeonhole," he said.

"Everyone on this waiting list needs someone here to speak up for everybody on the list who's in the same boat."

Labor Health spokesperson Anita Dow said the length of time Tasmanians were waiting to see a specialist for surgery had blown out to an unacceptable level - with many patients waiting for years.

While the number of people on the waitlist statewide sat at 10,146, she said the situation in Launceston was particularly bad, with some patients waiting more than two years to be seen.

Health Minister Jeremy Rockliff said he understood more needed to be done.

"To ensure more Tasmanians receive their procedure within clinically recommended times, we have developed a Statewide Elective Surgery Four Year Plan," he said.

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"The plan is patient-focused and provides a structured approach to reduce the size of the waiting list to a sustainable level."

As part of the plan, ward 3D at the LGH was reopened making 28 general medical beds available to reduce the number of non-surgical patients occupying surgical beds.

Short stay surgical unit beds have also been increased from eight to 12 to support elective surgery numbers at the hospital.

The four-year plan also identified staff recruitment and retention as an action required to improve services, but did not outline a timeframe, listing the staffing issue as ongoing.

Andrew Chounding is The Examiner's Health Reporter, if you have a health-related story please email Andrew.chounding@examiner.com.au

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