A "critical" lack of staffing and specialists, missed diagnoses, long wait times, and a lack of accessible services in Hunter New England are among some of the concerns submitted to a parliamentary inquiry into rural and regional healthcare in NSW.
The inquiry, which began this week, received hundreds of submissions - many anonymous - from patients and healthcare staff who documented their experiences with the health system in rural and regional NSW.
Some of the concerns leveled at Hunter New England Health facilities in the submissions include the lack of an on-site doctor - and occasionally the absence of an on-call doctor - at Dungog Hospital.
Another submission documented the lack of outpatient clinics for general surgery, general medicine and orthopaedics at Manning Hospital, as well as the need for staff specialists at the facility.
The mother of a 12-week-old baby said she and her daughter were sent home from Tamworth Hospital with an "eczema" diagnosis, only to find out five days later via a phone call that her pathology had shown it to be a staph infection requiring a GP prescription for urgent antibiotics.
Another mother said it took six hours for her vomiting three-month-old baby to be seen at Maitland Hospital.
An elderly man "in agony" with chest pains also waited "many hours" at Maitland Hospital to be seen, another submission said.
In Port Stephens, a "critical shortage" of doctors had led many local doctors to become burned out. There were also concerns about the lack of mental health services in the Great Lakes area, and palliative care in the Manning Valley.
Hunter New England Health chief executive Michael DiRienzo said he was unable to comment on submissions to the inquiry.
"I think what we have to do here is really wait to see what comes out of the inquiry, and if there is something specific in nature we need to look at immediately, then I would welcome that being brought to our attention," he said.
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