Hospital economies

Press, 12 August 1989, Page 22

Hospital economies

Sir,— I sent in a submission

to the Canterbury Area Health Board concerning the options for cutting expenditure, suggesting, among other things, that no hospital be closed until every avenue of saving on administration had been explored. Back comes a full-page letter from the board, telling me what I already know (otherwise I would not have forwarded the submission), on top quality A 4 paper, headings printed in grey, teal and black (no using up the old hospital board paper). And all that was required was a simple postcard saying that my submission was received. Government departments and S.O.E.S go in for this kind of extravagance, too. I would rather have the money spent on services than on imagebuilding. — Yours, etc., ELSIE LOCKE. August 9,1989. Sir,—Some of the solutions offered by the task force to the Area Health Board to reduce expenditure are acceptable as regards internal economies in the various hospitals and, no doubt, will be implemented, but .the suggestion to close essential, indispensible hospitals cannot be contemplated. In the first place the board should not have been advised to save S3OM in one year or be discharged. Presumably, it came from the Minister of Health, but it sounds more like a decree from the Kremlin rather than from a responsible M.P. and should never have been addressed to a democratically elected public body. The task force should have given its attention to putting money into the health service rather than clos-

ing services involving disruption of the lives of thousands of people, many aged and infirm, as well as trained and caring staff, not to mention the large number, of voluntary helpers who help to make the service of so excellent a standard. — Yours, etc., L. R. BURGESS. August 9, 1989.