Karen French and Ugo Fattore first experienced the New South Wales health system 20 years ago, when Mr Fattore was diagnosed with leukaemia.
Since then he has been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, had a knee replacement, and has contracted COVID-19 twice.
The Riverina couple has been in and out of hospitals as a result, but it was not until recently that their experience at Griffith Base Hospital turned sour.
In March, Mr Fattore was taken to the emergency department (ED) after suffering extreme pain and swelling in his leg.
Ms French said that night was "bedlam" at the hospital.
"I'd never seen anything like it in all the years that I've been going up there," she said.
Ms French, who lives in Griffith, said after five hours of waiting at the ED, she demanded Mr Fattore be seen by a doctor. He was then sent to Wagga Wagga Base Hospital.
He was later found with an aneurysm in his leg.
She said their traumatic experience was due to understaffing.
"None of the staff are at fault; it's our health system," Ms French said.
"In the 20 years that I have been travelling with Ugo, particularly as his carer, the decline in the last 20 years is just ridiculous.
Ongoing hospital concerns
Nurses at Griffith Base Hospital, which is undergoing a $250 million redevelopment, have joined recent statewide strikes over a dispute with the state government about pay and conditions.
According to the NSW Nurses and Midwives Association, the hospital is short 20 to 25 full-time equivalent nurses.
Community leaders and health workers have also raised concerns about the future of the hospital's maternity ward due to chronic staffing issues.
Murrumbidgee Local Health District (MLHD) said there were no plans to close the ward.
Two days after Ms French's experience in the ED, her granddaughter Baillee was rushed from Leeton Hospital to Griffith due to haemorrhaging after giving birth.
"There wasn't time for her to go to Wagga so they had to get her to Griffith," Ms French said.
Meanwhile, Griffith City Council Mayor Doug Curran said he had heard "rumblings" within the community about the need for mental health beds and orthopaedic services.
He said the hospital's services covered more than 100,000 people in the western Riverina and the community needed to feel confident the services were adequate.
Mr Curran said people in Hay and Hillston already needed to travel 90 minutes to Griffith for care, and some were being told to go further to Wagga Wagga.
Regional health investment
Griffith Base Hospital's redevelopment will include an improved emergency department, maternity, and paediatric services.
The NSW government last week announced a Regional Health Division within the Ministry of Health to tailor health services for people outside the big cities.
When asked about Griffith Base Hospital's staff shortages, Regional Health Minister Bronnie Taylor said the government was "continuously investing".
In a statement, the Murrumbidgee Local Health District said regional NSW was experiencing unprecedented workforce shortages further exacerbated by COVID-19.
It said community members should present to the Griffith Hospital ED if required and the MLHD welcomed feedback to improve services.
