A Wangaratta family has been left "in limbo" after waiting nearly two years for an autism assessment for their child.
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Jodie and Paul Kuhne have been trying to get their 10-year-old son, Khan, an assessment to see whether he has Autism Spectrum Disorder since June, 2019.
Mrs Kuhne said she was frustrated and angry at the lengthy process.
"There's nothing we can do, we're stuck in limbo," she said.
"We've made phone calls, we've done internet research, we've tried everything and anything."
Mrs Kuhne said there was already a long waiting list for autism assessments in Wangaratta before the pandemic, but during COVID-19, appointments were cancelled so the backlog grew larger.
"Then we got out of lockdown and appointments became available, but they were booked out months in advance," she said.
"Now its just phenomenal, it's just crazy.
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"The waiting is the hardest, because you can't get access to any help services in the meantime.
"There is nothing available, so until he actually gets a diagnosis, he is stuck."
Mrs Kuhne said she had inquired about getting the assessments done in Albury, the closest place after Wangaratta, but there was a three-month waiting list last time she checked.
"Even Melbourne's got a backlog, from what I can gather, because Victoria was under the harshest lockdown in all of Australia; it hasn't affected just the North East, it's affected all of Victoria," she said.
She said people might be able to drive to Sydney and get an assessment in a month, but the assessment process took about half a dozen appointments over a number of weeks.
"Not many people have the money, or the time, or the fuel to do that and we shouldn't have to," she said.
Mrs Kuhne said she first suspected Khan had autism was about four years ago when she noticed "little niggly things", but when the family was forced into statewide lockdown last year some of his behavioural issues escalated.
"Without that diagnosis we cant get the support and help that my son needs to be able to function socially," she said.
Mrs Kuhne said ultimately it was a supply and demand issue, but it was worse in rural and regional areas.
"There just needs to be more support," she said.
Victoria Ellis
Victoria Ellis grew up on the Border and loves reporting for her home community. She is a University of Wollongong Journalism graduate. In 2018 Victoria was awarded the Bruce Gordon Scholarship for Journalism and completed a 10 week internship with WIN News Illawarra. In 2019 she was awarded The Border Mail's Cameron Thompson Scholarship, where she completed a three week internship, before taking up ongoing employment in 2021.
Victoria Ellis grew up on the Border and loves reporting for her home community. She is a University of Wollongong Journalism graduate. In 2018 Victoria was awarded the Bruce Gordon Scholarship for Journalism and completed a 10 week internship with WIN News Illawarra. In 2019 she was awarded The Border Mail's Cameron Thompson Scholarship, where she completed a three week internship, before taking up ongoing employment in 2021.
