GEORGIE?MOORE, of Eastcliff Road, Dawlish, writes:

I was interested to read Cllr Clarance's letter re the latest proposals for our local hospitals.

He seems to be trying to pour oil on troubled waters, but are his ideas workable? I would have to question this.

Like him, I have attended several presentations and I must congratulate the CCG on the excellent manner in which they have been presented.

There has been at least one Teignmouth doctor who has been involved in the consultation and those who have retired need to be fully up-to-date with current situations in order to make accurate comment.

Dawlish Hospital opened with 18 beds. I believe that patients from a wide area are cared for in all our hospitals depending on bed vacancies not according to where they live.

The reasons for having one enhanced MIU unit in Dawlish, with x-ray, have been made very clear and would provide a better service for everyone. Can we expect the Teignmouth people to only have minor injuries on the days when Teignmouth is open and likewise for Dawlish? When we sustain a 'minor injury' the last thing we need to be concerned about is which hospital is open today? This confusion would just lead to more people travelling to Torbay or Exeter.

Consideration also needs to be given to traffic congestion. Teignmouth is frequently congested, as is Newton Abbot, both on their eastern sides. Approaching Dawlish Hospital from Teignmouth one is directed via John Nash Drive, thus avoiding hold-ups.

The distance between the two hospitals is just over four miles. Aren't we lucky that we have two hospitals so close together and three others within ten miles? We have Volunteering in Health and Disability Transport to help with transport to the hospitals.

I think that we all need to stop and ask ourselves why we are so afraid of change and why we think that everything should be equal – the 'it's not fair' syndrome.