SIR,

I would like to thank all individuals who have supported me over the past few weeks.

The response to my mother's terrible case has illustrated the sympathy and indeed humility which resides in Monmouth.

We now know that there are many concerned residents who demand and deserve better services.

Conversely, it was worrying to read Dr Hubert J Messing's letter last week.

It exposed the period of time this problem has existed for.

The population was considerably smaller in the 1990s and will continue to increase rapidly.

I believe he was quite right to point out that concerned residents should write to the health trust. Pressure should inspire action.

Thankfully, this winter appears to be relatively tame in comparison with the last, and recent reports have shown that waiting times have improved.

However, services must be judged not by how they perform when times are good, but when times are bad.

Therefore, imagination and persistence is necessary in prompting the delivery of better services.

On a brighter note, I was happy to learn that a cross-border agreement has recently been established, however, this is a reactive measure, which highlights a lack of pro-active policy making inside the service so far.

I also suspect this information has not filtered down, because no-one at the inquest mentioned it, and it was only recently developed.

Consequently, I will still be calling a meeting on 11th January at Drybridge House.

This will function as a forum for us all to inform each other and pool ideas on how to proceed and improve our health services.

With a healthy dose of patience I am confident we can succeed on behalf of our families, friends and the community at large.

Mathew Davies

(Monmouth)