Our nightmares on front line of an NHS in crisis
Little did I know that after reading reports last week of no free beds in 15 hospitals, my 93-year-old mother, who has Alzheimer’s and is virtually blind, would experience the crisis in the NHS.
At 5pm on Sunday she was rushed to East Surrey Hospital in Redhill with breathing problems and a severe chest infection.
While I cannot fault the dedication of the staff, it was 11.30pm before I was told there were no ward beds available.
The current situation is totally unacceptable.
J. Neal, Crawley, West Sussex
On December 10, I had a bad fall at home. I had to call the emergency services and I was taken to the A&E department at Leicester Royal Infirmary.
I was in the back of an ambulance for three-and-a-half hours, and when I was admitted to A&E I was put on a trolley by a wall for another five hours. The area was like a battleground but apparently I was lucky – the night before, patients had waited sevenand-a-half hours in ambulances.
I am appalled that another local A&E, at George Eliot Hospital in Nuneaton, might close. This would impact greatly on Leicester Royal Infirmary, which is already short-staffed.
Charity begins at home. We should scrap overseas aid, some
of which is spent on useless projects and goes to unscrupulous despots, and give aid only in emergencies, such as famines and disasters.
Theresa May should spend a Saturday night in A&E to see for herself the struggle going on.
Pamela Kirk, Leicester
Is there anyone who would not support disbanding the Department for International Development, funnelling £2billion of aid a year through established charities and reallocating the remaining £10billion it spends a year to the NHS?
Roy Daniels, Luton, Bedfordshire
The £285million that we have spent on an airport on St Helena that cannot be used – and the £177,000 you revealed last week that we have coughed up to compensate businesses affected by the debacle – could really have gone to good use in the NHS.
Ian Forrest, Lymm, Cheshire
I would like to thank all you Tory voters and Tory politicians for recent events at our A&Es.
Collectively your decisions have underfunded the NHS to dangerous levels and have put us all in peril.
Mark Tate, Greengates, Bradford
The NHS has become a political football and its funding needs to be separated from general taxation.
On the ballot paper at each General Election there should be a section to vote on increasing or decreasing this tax.
Gerry Doyle, Liverpool