I wish we got same empathy as Davina

I was heartened to read in Life last week that Davina McCall (below) received such compassionate care from A&E when she was traumatised by her sister’s diagnosis of terminal cancer, but saddened to hear that her sister died at 50, such a young age.

However, I am disappointed to say that my recent experience of A&E was not the same as Davina’s.

My 49-year-old brother-in-law was taken by ambulance, accompanied by his wife, to A&E. We (his wife and family) waited patiently for more than five hours for news of his progress, mindful of how busy staff must have been. Only after we chased them were we informed that he had been taken earlier to an observation ward and no one had thought to let us know.

As with Davina’s sister, my brother-in-law was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and he died one week later.

While I appreciate that all parts of the NHS are under extreme pressure, and I am definitely not advocating that Davina and her sister deserved to be treated in any other way than they were, I can’t help feeling it’s one level of treatment for the general public and a higher level of treatment for celebrities. Yvonne Hall, Sunderland I think doctors, nurses and other staff do a wonderful job keeping the wheels of our NHS turning under great pressure, and dealing with patients in need. David Courtney, Weston-super-Mare