"Surgery Waiting Lists - Canberra"

I was referred to the public system to see if I can have surgery for a lower back disc herniation / degenerative disc disease last year. I followed up today to find I am in the lowest priority and many hundreds down the queue to see a neurosurgeon. Mind you, that is just for a consultation to discuss surgery. I haven't even joined the waiting list for surgery yet.

All they could tell me is that I can pay for it myself (yeah, what a joke - $50,000 I haven't got).

I am in pain every day, taking pain killers that make me drowsy all the time and I haven't worked in over a year. It was a work injury but the insurer won't pay for surgery either.

They go on about reducing hospital waiting lists but that isn't the problem, there is a whole other waiting period that doesn't get mentioned at all in the figures. At this point in time my whole life is on hold, unable to do anything but wait and watch as my life drags on while my muscles wither away from being unable to use them.

Public health in Australia sucks, as does the worker's comp system. It leaves people broke and without hope.