TAKE control of your own healthcare is the message from a Wyre Forest cancer patient who believes it is the best way to get the most out of the NHS.

Steve Brown, of Bewdley, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer in January, said his experience had taught him the importance of taking a pro-active role to make sure his treatment remained on schedule.

The 57-year-old said: "It was my GP who advised me to double-check any appointments that were made and it was only when I started doing this that things got done and I had my operation."

On several occasions his notes were missing when he went for an appointment with a consultant and several days after his operation he received a letter informing him of the date when the procedure was going to be carried out which, by that time, was too late.

Speaking during the Your Health, Your Future debate , he advised people not to "take anything on trust" and to check everything they were told from appointments that are made to asking to see letters that were being sent to consultants about their care.

Mr Brown, who lives in Branches Close, said afterwards patients needed to "take charge"of their health themselves, adding: "Patients need to push and pull and not take things lying down. If they sit back they will not get anywhere."

He said he was not criticising the staff as he was pleased with the care he had received at Kidderminster and Worcestershire Royal Hospitals, as well as the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, where he had his operation last month.

The maths teacher said he believed the disorganisation was caused by inefficiency within the whole of the National Health Service.

Mr Brown, who is convalescing before returning to work, said it was the result of "constant reorganisation" by the Government, as hospitals were not given long enough to adjust to a change before a new one was introduced and hospitals were under increasing pressure to meet targets, which also put them under strain.