Ref the Primary Care Trusts plans for Pershore. If only in the name of common sense the PCTs desperate last minute idea to shoe horn the cottage hospital into the new Heathlands home for the elderly is ludicrous, and smacks of panic.

1 The home is not built for use as a hospital, I am reliably informed that money will have to be found to convert what is a brand new building yet to open for use as a hospital.

2 Why? What could possibly be the incentive for heart of England housing association to allow this, the whole feel of the home will change as a result, and psychologically I feel it will be bad for the elderly long term residents to have to live above the hospital where many elderly patients will no doubt die beneath them, some of the very sick patients will be known by the residents. Who approached heart of England about this and when? The access road to the home is about 100yds from major traffic lights in Pershore, and this junction also serves the civic centre, the police, social services residents and one of the towns biggest car parks, adding to the highway problems here is irresponsible to say the least.

3 The government is quite insistent that there is more money available for health than ever before and that next year will see a large injection of cash for this area, whilst the government is also saying that community facilities like cottage hospitals are great value for money and should be encouraged to offer more services not less. Can some of the money arriving soon not be earmarked to help with this debt.

4 Why in all the suggestions of how to save cash, do the only job cut threats seem to affect nurses, counsellors etc, people who are actually at the forefront of patient care. Nowhere is it suggested that administration jobs should go, and yet clearly there is overstaffing at many levels within the health service.

The PCT is determined to make services and therefore patients suffer for the sins of the financial managers who have allowed this situation to develop, this is simply not right and I believe there must be another way forward, and it is up to all interested parties to have real and constructive consultations about what the options are. The PCT's idea of consultation has become clear to me after attending a meeting at the civic centre in Pershore a few weeks ago when Mike Ridley the chairman was unable to tell us anything, but said that all was not lost, he had much more consulting to do with the doctors. Now here we are three weeks later and the impression we all have is that this is the only option and that protests will be futile. I for one will not give up on trying to retain and indeed improve our services in Pershore and call upon anyone concerned to write to our MP and to the Primary Care Trust and inform them that these plans are just not good enough for Pershore.

MRS GAYNOR AMPHLETT, Hurst Road, Pershore.