Like many boys his age, Spencer Connelly loves playing sport, but being active is becoming increasingly uncomfortable for the 11-year-old.

Key points: Spencer Connelly, 11, was the victim of an arson attack in 2012

Spencer Connelly, 11, was the victim of an arson attack in 2012 Every couple of years he needs skin graft surgery, as the graft does not grow with his body

Every couple of years he needs skin graft surgery, as the graft does not grow with his body He has been waiting for 15 months for his third round of skin graft surgery

The boy from Devonport, Tasmania, was supposed to have his third round of skin graft surgery within a waiting time of 90 days.

Instead he has been on Tasmania's public elective surgery waiting list for 15 months.

"When I turn left or right it pulls it," Spencer said, pointing to his neck.

"Skin grafts don't grow with the body," his mother Alison McGee said.

The grafts are getting tighter and pulling, reducing Spencer's ability to move his neck.

"He has adjusted his whole life accordingly," Ms McGee said.

"He knows he doesn't have the full neck range so he is just turning his whole body instead."

"There is the risk of skin splitting and becoming infected."

Old photos of Spencer Connelly and his brother Fletcher Connelly. ( ABC News: Rhiana Whitson )

Spencer and his older brother Fletcher were burned in 2012 in a horrific arson attack.

Their father lit two gas cylinders inside the family car with them and himself inside. He is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for the attempted murder-suicide.

The burns Spencer suffered to 38 per cent of his body require surgery every couple of years.

The long wait for his third round of surgery means the family has been forced to put their life on hold.

"It is just sad to see, I don't understand why they can't just fix it all now, why we have to wait so long," Ms McGee said.

"If we had the surgery, got it over and done with, then we could go back to the life that he knows."

Elective surgery waitlist blows out

Spencer Connelly requires skin graft surgery every couple of years. ( ABC News: Rhiana Whitson )

Spencer is one of 9,601 Tasmanians waiting for elective surgery.

The Tasmanian Health Department will not confirm how many of those on the list are children.

Tasmania has the fifth-longest wait times for elective surgeries in the country, according to the most recent Report on Government Services data.

Ninety per cent of patients across all surgeries waited 238 days in 2017-18, according to the data.

But doctors warn the wait times are set to get even longer.

Surgeons have been told to slash the number of surgeries they perform this financial year by 15 per cent due to budget constraints.

Alison McGee with sons Spencer and Fletcher Connelly. ( ABC News: Rhiana Whitson )

The Australian Medical Association warns the cuts have a human cost.

"We are going to see less service, we are going to see more people at risk, we are going to see more people suffer and potentially more people die," John Saul from the Australian Medical Association said.

Doctor says waitlist 'so frustrating'

Dr Saul sees people who have been waiting years for elective surgery in his GP clinic every day.

"It's just so frustrating, whether you see a child waiting for grommets who might have a risk of becoming deaf as a result of it, whether that might be a hip replacement that's taking two to three years," he said.

"It's so frustrating, it's sad. Our sick and our poor are just getting sicker and poorer."

Dr Saul said the budget cuts would cost the health system more in the long run.

"You delay a simple hernia operation and it becomes strangulated, it becomes emergency surgery. It further clogs up our emergency rooms," he said.

"You delay a hip operation and it becomes a fractured hip, there is a risk of that person dying as a result of the extra surgical needs they will have."

In a statement, Tasmanian Health Minister Sarah Courtney said the volume of elective surgeries was based on demand and available funding.

"I acknowledge and understand the concerns expressed by the families involved, and the Government always wants Tasmanians to receive the care they need sooner," she said.

"Our skilled clinicians are the experts in triaging patients according to clinical need, not politicians, and senior clinicians at the Royal Hobart Hospital remain engaged with Spencer's family."

She said the overall health budget had increased and "we'll continue to work with clinicians to prioritise funds over the coming years".

Watch this story tonight on 7.30.