Ian Oakley has to drive almost 1,600 kilometres every year in order to receive treatment for multifocal motor neuropathy.
The nearest specialist to his Mildura GP is about 400km away in Adelaide.
He is finding the biannual trips take longer as the disorder slowly weakens his grip and muscles.
Mr Oakley said access to a local specialist would make his treatment easier.
"I get pains in my feet and my right arm is wasting away," he said.
"It's not terrible, but I haven't got the strength.
"When it comes to driving my hands have got plenty of power to hang on to the steering wheel nice and tight, but the individual fingers on their own, especially the thumb and index finger, are very weak."
Stark difference
The Australian Department of Health and Aged Care classified Mildura as a "district of workforce shortage" in 2022, in relation to specialist medical practitioners.
Mildura was identified as a remote area and found to be lacking adequate specialists in anaesthetics, cardiology, diagnostic radiology, general surgery, medical oncology, obstetrics and gynaecology, ophthalmology, and psychiatry.
Carli Leishman moved to the region from Melbourne in 2019.
She said while she loved the smaller community, the difference in health services was a drawback.
"Sometimes we have to go to Adelaide or Melbourne to see specialists, that's been a huge adjustment for us," Ms Leishman said.
"I hope with a lot more advocacy and a lot more involvement from the community, we can keep pushing to attract the right health professionals to the region."
Wait for master plan
The Mildura Base Public Hospital is still waiting for a master plan almost two years after the state government pledged $2 million to its development in the 2021-2022 budget.
Chief executive Terry Welch said discussions had slowed since the 2022 election, and he did not expect the plan to be delivered any time soon.
"The government made a lot of commitments during the [2022] election cycle — it's about what they think are the priorities for the state," he said.
"We're continuing to look at services we can provide outside the hospital.
"We know we only have a certain internal capacity."
The master plan was meant to be delivered in April 2022.
It was then delayed to mid-2022, with no further dates provided by the Victorian government.
In response to questions put to Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas by the ABC, a government spokesperson said: "We know how important it is for the community to have access to the best possible care, which is why we returned Mildura Base Public Hospital back to the community and delivered more than $30 million to upgrade and expand it".
The government did not respond to specific questions about when the master plan would be delivered and why it was delayed.
