I was shocked and utterly appalled to read about Les Howard (Blind fury, The Press, April 24, and Saved!, The Press, April 25) being denied treatment for his AMD (age-related macular regeneration disorder).

How can the primary care trust justify denying funding for treatment which is fundamental to a person's quality of life?

They clearly completely disregard the recommended treatment of health care professionals, even at consultant level, in preference to funding.

Okay, so the treatment costs £1,000 per injection, but for what? The potential of saving a person's sight.

So, it might not be effective, but, at the end of the day, it might.

Perhaps they can justify to us taxpayers all the benefits it would cost us for disability allowance, etc, if he were to be registered blind.

Perhaps it is just that this gentleman is over 75, and thus it is deemed not cost-effective to treat him, indicating that his sight is not important because he is an older person.

It is his right to be afforded treatment, when you consider sight is a basic human right and need; and maybe just purely from all that he has, and is likely to contribute during his life.

Paula Strider, Staff nurse, care of the elderly, Caxton Avenue, York.


* It has always been my understanding that medicine was about making people well.

Reading your article on Tuesday about a patient denied a sight-saving injection in one eye, and being advised that he would have to wait until the disease invaded the other eye before being offered treatment on the NHS, left me very disturbed at the uncaring, officious approach to such a very personal problem.

If the NHS judges treatment on the grounds of the odds on a successful outcome, then they have nothing to do with making people well, and everything to do with administering funds for the purposes of cost-efficient administration.

The doctors in York must despair of the antics of a judgment panel that can leave a patient in such a dilemma with his sight at risk, leaving a very caring hospital looking very much the opposite.

Well done Harrogate Nuffield for picking up this situation and waiving costs to help.

The message from the trust seems to be "don't get ill".

Jon Whitmore, Springfield Road, York.


* EVERYONE knows that the NHS in North Yorkshire is in crisis.

A lack of NHS dentists, ward closures, threats of closure to hospitals, number of jobs lost, the list goes on.

The cuts in the NHS will lengthen waiting times, increase suffering and in some cases will lead to an early death.

Are we really going to stand by and let this happen to our friends, family, our loved ones? Enough is enough.

Now is the time that the health unions, along with politicians of all parties and the people of North Yorkshire, should get together and do something. If someone wants to organise a protest march, put my name at the top of the list for it.

Now is the time for action, stop these cuts.

C Mangham, Lindsey Avenue, Acomb, York.


* JUST recently I spent a few days in York Hospital on the G1 ward. I would just like to say I was a little anxious on arrival.

Due to a caring nursing staff I was put at ease.

I can't praise them enough for the after care, right from the consultants to the day and night staff, even the cleaner. What a wonderful job they do, I take my hat off to them.

Good luck, and God bless you all.

E Perkins, York.