Why the delay on crucial decision?

I feel that Cllr Jones-roberts has touched on very pertinent point [Letters, February 13] regarding the situation in the East Kent Hospitals Trust when she refers to the current situation in the maternity department disguising the fact that there must be other departments equally impeded by lack of centralisation which anyone, including myself, who has suffered the indignity of the “holding area” when being admitted through the accident and emergency department at QEQM would attest to. I mean no detriment to the medical or nursing staff who are under tremendous pressure to cope and I also realise you cannot conjure beds out of nowhere but the facilities and the management of them is totally inadequate for the growing population of Thanet.

I have attended three of the general consultation exercise meetings and am well aware that temporary CEOS have been drafted in at considerable expense to sort our problems but to no apparent avail. Why do we need so much consultation to come up with a solution ? There are only two options on the table and after a lifetime working at a top level in the health service I cannot understand why the Trust, instead of mounting a feasibility study to identify a clear option seem to be channelling more money into deteriorating facilities

when, with a medical school due to open in September, surely we should be pulling all the stops out to build a new hospital to accommodate them?

We are fortunate to have outlets for out-patient, minor injuries and community care which are the envy of other parts of the country and our policy of joined-up care seems to work well in this environment; let us hope it will lead to the same facilities for in-patient care. Maybe our MPS collectively could persuade Boris Johnson to include Canterbury in promise of 40 new hospitals.

Tom Snee

Marine Parade, Whitstable