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Comments from Members of the Community Please dont let our hospitals close, you know it makes sense to keep them open. Gordon O'C 22 Jun 2006 We can always find the money to fight wars 'just n unjust'. When the NHS was formed this country was bankrupt after the war. They still provided a good service - we are now one of the wealthiest count Owen S 22 Jun 2006 Stop thinking of your future - think of ours!! Lynda F 22 Jun 2006 Why should we lose our local hospitals when the figures show that they are all in the black, to supplement others who are in the red. Our nearest hospital will be at least 25 miles away. Avis S 22 Jun 2006 Stop paying John Prescott and save our hospitals instead after all charity begins at home, let him earn his wages like the rest of us. J. A. D. 22 Jun 2006 A lot of people have donated money to our local hospitals, including my grandfather. Leave our local community hospitals alone. Michael RR 22 Jun 2006 How can you close the Dilke hospital when it was local miners who had money stopped out of their wages every week to pay for it in the first place? Roy J 22 Jun 2006 I have gone from being a staunch Labour supporter to being very disillusioned and angry with the party - and feel very let down. The loss of the Dilke and Lydney hospitals will be devastating to the F R. R. W. 22 Jun 2006 The Forest of Dean needs local services easily accessible to everyone who lives in the land between two rivers!!! What happened to "24 hours to save the NHS"? Ron D 22 Jun 2006 Consider people that live in this area and their needs. philip 22 Jun 2006 We need a hospital in the Forest of Dean. Please!! Louise A 22 Jun 2006 Not like Mr Blair had an operation almost straight away I have been waiting 4 years for a Gall Bladder operation, also it is cheaper and more convenient to get to the Dilke. I cannot afford car park. E.J. & C.J. M 22 Jun 2006 One of the best hospitals I have ever been in - it's in reach. Susan J 22 Jun 2006 Think once Think twice Think saving lives not money. Ill spent at top level management. Lynn B 22 Jun 2006 Think again! Ann & Roger B 22 Jun 2006 Reduce expenditure on administration and develop facilities and staffing. A & A P 22 Jun 2006 Dear Prime Minister, Why are you condeming the young, the sick and the elderly to long journeys on sub standard roads to receive hospital treatment with the closure of our local Cottage Hospitals? R. A. 22 Jun 2006 Resign quick - get out leave forester alone. Jackie M 22 Jun 2006 Save our Hospital. We need it, our Nans, our Children need it, Glos is too far. The decision is yours! Laura B 22 Jun 2006 What is happening to our NHS? Cut backs all the time - spend less on mamagers - too many chiefs and not enough indians. Mark J 22 Jun 2006 The second word is OFF. You lost this seat and now you hit us with this. We need our hospitals. Malcolm D 22 Jun 2006 We will NOT let this happen. Catherine S 22 Jun 2006 Save my local casualty dept for my accident prone son. Lynda W 22 Jun 2006 Keep all the hospitals in the Forest of Dean open. Susan C 22 Jun 2006 Stop dismantling the health service - consider the needs of local people. Richard L 22 Jun 2006 Get your act together. Gemma H 22 Jun 2006 Sort it out! Sarah P 22 Jun 2006 Country folk matter as much as your darling inner city voters. Roger M 22 Jun 2006 Don'd destroy our heritage!!! Leave the hospitals alone!! Vicky H 22 Jun 2006 Young Mum needing the Dilke a lot. Stacey R 22 Jun 2006 Don't please close the hospitals down. Lorraine A 22 Jun 2006 Keep our hospitals please. Kathy W 22 Jun 2006 Leave the Forest alone. Chris C 22 Jun 2006 Lydney Hospital has been brilliant for family members - my disabled elderly Mum and Grandchildren etc. John W 22 Jun 2006 Keep our local services open please. M. W 22 Jun 2006 Keep our services going. J.V. W 22 Jun 2006 Leave our hospitals alone. Alice H 22 May 2006 Why is it always old people that suffers the most. REMEMBER, YOU HAVE TO GET OLD. Mrs N 22 Jun 2006 I am 85 and it worries me about the hospitals closing as it's 22 miles to Gloucester. WE NEED THEM. G. J. 22 Jun 2006 Instead of Mr Blair trying to run the world with the Americans he needs to concentrate on the services and people of this country. Mr & Mrs B. D 22 Jun 2006 We have little public transport the Forest needs it's local hospitals. I have recently had to attend the GRH a lot and had to pay £25 one way for a taxi to keep appointments. B.P. J 22 Jun 2006 You are already responsible for deaths in Iraq, don't be in the Forest of Dean. Help save our local hospitals, don't be a Maggie Thatcher, listen to the people. As an American President once said, "the buck stops here." E. C 22 Jun 2006 I am disabled. I need these hospitals, like many other people. Hitler lasted 6 years but we won in the end. We don't need other Hitlers which is what you are giving us. But you will not win over this. Daphne H 22 Jun 2006 Get yourself and your party out of office and allow the country to recover from the MESS you have made of it. Please do this quickly before you ruin our little country altogether. Michael B 22 Jun 2006 Keep Lydney Hospital open it's a great hospital. If it is closed it will be a disaster for the Forest of Dean and surrounding areas. P. D 22 Jun 2006 PLEASE, PLEASE Mr Blair. open your eyes to the fact that impending closure of so many community hospitals is causing great unrest to people throughout Gloucestershire, especially Lydney and Cinderford M. K. R 22 Jun 2006 The public have no confidence in this government whatsoever. It's time for a drastic change as soon as possible. M. B. 22 Jun 2006 Close all access paths to "Great" Britain for asylum seekers/immigrants. Re-train those blatantly sponging benefits from the system. Reinvest this in the NHS. Then consider permitting an agreed limit. Michael B. 22 Jun 2006 Our parents helped pay for a hospital to give us first class treatment in the Forest of Dean. You took away maternity so no more Foresters. A. M. 22 Jun 2006 Please keep the Dilke Hospital open, It's needed. A. B. 22 Jun 2006 Keep your hands off our local services. They are bought and paid for by the people of the Forest of Dean and are used by them. We need to keep these services and the people who work in them. L. A. H 22 Jun 2006 DO NOT close our local Hospitals. They are essential to the wellfare and wellbeing of the local community. M. R. E 22 Jun 2006 Please help us to keep our hospitals E.R. P 22 Jun 2006 Dear Prime Minister, Please keep the Dilke, Lydney Hospitals and care homes open. As it often takes 3/4 to 1 hour to get to Gloucester Hospital some people may pass away on the way, hope it is not us. Mr & Mrs E 22 Jun 2006 These services are vital for the Forest of Dean. Barbara H 22 Jun 2006 Save our local Hospitals Cicely M 22 Jun 2006 The Forest Hospitals are vital to us, Gloster may be only 20 miles away but our car takes over an hour to get to, which could mean the difference between life or death. G.a & J.D. H 22 Jun 2006 The people in the Forest of Dean need these services. If taken away it will mean longer journey times and will be a hardship for the community. J.P. P 22 Jun 2006 The Royal Forest of Dean needs it's local hospitals - the building of houses in this area booming - it would be dangerous and cause needless deaths if people are made to travel to Gloucester. S. D. 22 Jun 2006 Where will we go if the Dilke is closed? Glos Royal frequently runs out of beds now. It will mean more traffic on an already busy road. More fumes. More stress. L. W. 22 Jun 2006 For God's sake, please keep these hospitals open. We are in a rural area and these services are vital. Sarah B 22 Jun 2006 Less administration and more "hands on" medical staff - tragedy to lose our local hospitals, nurses and doctors. Ruby P 22 Jun 2006 We need our hospital for the health of our community. V.S. L 22 Jun 2006 We NEED our local hospitals. We have raised money for buying equipment and parts of the building to keep them going - it means the health if not the lives of our community. A.V. C 22 Jun 2006 Our 2 main hospitals local to us local to us were built and purchased by our generations before us who gave money and worked hard to give us cottage hospitals. B 22 Jun 2006 I have had excellent treatment at the Dilke and Lydney Hospitals. We need our local hospitals. Gail H 22 Jun 2006 I feel as a community we benefit locally from the Dilke and it would be a great shame if it closed. Susn W 22 Jun 2006 Our local hospitals are essential. Gloucester Royal Hospital is 20 - 30 miles away from parts of our area. If you have ever lived in a rural community you would know how much these hospitals are value Mary R 22 Jun 2006 You have no idea what it is like to live in the country, we need local hospitals. D. C 22 Jun 2006 Instead of poking your nose in everybodies business, concentrate on OUR problems, local hospitals etc. D. W 22 Jun 2006 We need our local hospitals Mr & Mrs R 22 Jun 2006 Please keep our local hospital the Dilke open. 17 miles to the nearest in Gloucester to travel. D. C 22 Jun 2006 My whole family has been helped over many years by our local Dilke Hospital. Now despite being taxed up to the hilt like all working families our services are being cut instead of being improved. John W 22 Jun 2006 The Dilke Hospital must not close! My husband has been nursed back. to good health on two occesions after 2 serious illnesses. Gloucester is too far Mr & Mrs J W 22 Jun 2006 The Forest of Dean population will not be able to cope with the closure of the Dilke, Lydney and Clliers Court.The elderly will be left without any support. ' Where is the care in the community'? Janet A 22 Jun 2006 The roads to Gloucester are poor from the Forest of Dean. The NHS trust need to be made to explain why the budget they have been responsible for in the past has not been controlled properly. Graham A 22 Jun 2006 Please don't close our hospitals. It's quite unnecessary. Myself or any member of my family doesn't want to travel 20 miles to casualty. Don't be greedy/selfish. Adam T 22 Jun 2006 Leave our hospitals alone as we have had everything else taken off us and out of district if anything is left here. We want all left alone. We have no MRSA here. E.R. O 22 Jun 2006 Give us the same services as you would expect. D. C 22 Jun 2006 Stop taking more and giving less. B. R. C 22 Jun 2006 Live in the real world with real people and realise the pressures and lack of services currently available without further reductions. B 22 Jun 2006 Sack some of the gas bags and employmore medical staff. Supply public transport. K. M 22 Jun 2006 Live in a rural area without your own transport or private financial means. M. M 22 Jun 2006 Please do not close our hospital.We live in a very rural area. I am sure if we could change places you would feel very strongly about it. MR & Mrs J. W 22 Jun 2006 As an 86 year old I have spent time in Lydney. The ease of getting there to see consultants is better than travelling in traffic for one & a half hours early in the morning. Queenie B 22 Jun 2006 Can we please have French government in charge - they look after their people and hospitals. Follow them. Keith J 22 Jun 2006 The Forest needs these local hospitals - 20 miles to Gloucester is a lot of fuel. Only one journey, what about long term illness. Lee J 22 Jun 2006 Spend more on local hospitals - more on nursing staff - less on management. Carol J 22 Jun 2006 We need these local hospitals - the Forest is growing - it is unfair for elderly to travel. Hannah J 22 Jun 2006 Save our local hospitals - our local hospital Lydney has been modernised extremely. Polly J 22 Jun 2006 Unacceptable actions which cannot be condoned. H. D 22 Jun 2006 Try looking after the people and needs of your own country before helping other ones. Leave our hospitals alone. Jillian G 22 Jun 2006 I believe it's time for our country to wake up and take care of what we already have, not what you all think we need. There's a phrase that comes to mind "If it's not broke, don't fix it". I could go Brett R 22 Jun 2006 It's not our local NHS that are loosing money, it's the overpaid beaurocrats in their ivory towers. Medical staff and patients are suffering. M. R 22 Jun 2006 Please keep all our hospitals open as we need them. B. R 22 Jun 2006 It's not good enough wanting to close our local hospitals (Dilke & Lydney). How would you feel if all your medical services were closed? Bryan & Sheila S 22 Jun 2006 Cancel NI so we can take out private insurance. Our hospitals were donated by the public A.T 22 Jun 2006 I spent several months in GRH & Kings College London. I saw first hand where savings could be made, the main one is get rid of the dead wood and layabouts. Who? So called managers S. J 22 Jun 2006 Road access to Gloucester from the Forest is limited at best. When I need a nebuliser it takes 7 minutes to get to the Dilke. It would take at least 4 times that to get to Gloucester. People will die Louise F 22 Jun 2006 Cottage hospitals are a vital mainstay of NHS provision for rural communities, offering quick access and a warm atmosphere.Closing them down to 'save' money or offset financial deficits caused by inco Andrew S 22 Jun 2006 Take the trouble to find the origins and real need of the Forest services and the affection that they are held in by people of the Dean. 2Less spin & grin" and more real actions Mr & Mrs E 22 Jun 2006 The Dilke & Lydney hospitals are a lifeline to the people of the Forest. They are both well used. The closures must not be allowed. H.M. B 22 Jun 2006 Stop just talking about democracy.Give it back to us. Listen before your time runs out! Paul G 22 Jun 2006 Our local hospitals are brilliant, good, clean, wonderful staff who care. Care should be for all in local hospitals. People voted Labour for government, people can vote you out. M. D 22 Jun 2006 Honour the promises made by New Labour. Mr G. B 22 Jun 2006 We pay our taxes and expect services locally. Mrs G. B 22 Jun 2006 Yet another rural community that has to lose it's major health facilities due to the total mis-management within the health service as a whole. Brian S 22 Jun 2006 Stop giving benefits and mobility allowances to people who are able to go out to work. Then you will have extra money to put into the NHS & community hospitals Joan S 22 Jun 2006 Mr Blair, you will find Foresters will not give in for important matters regarding Dilke Hospital. A.J. D 22 Jun 2006 You will find, Mr Blair, that the Foresters are fighters especially for The Dilke. Rita D 22 Jun 2006 Why is the Forest suffering more than other areas? Andrew J 22 Jun 2006 Both our hospitals were funded many years ago by my Grandfathers at 6&4 pence a week and by our local Foresters. We cannot do without either. They belong to the Forest of Dean and we will fight to kee Mrs K. I.P. W 22 Jun 2006 It's about time your government gave us the services we have all paid for i.e. community services and NHS. Don't forget our local hospitals were paid for by donations of miners. Kathleen W 22 Jun 2006 As an ex miner I am disgusted over the closure of our hospitals which were kept going with moneys from miners. Then the mines were closed and friends of the hospitals have funded improvements. Wilfred W 22 Jun 2006 Save our local hospitals. I am 88 years old and can get to Lydney Hospital for outpatient appointments on my own. I cannot get to Gloucester independently. Mrs M. L 22 Jun 2006 Acquire government funding by cut-backs elsewhere. Mr & Mrs K. W 22 Jun 2006 Closing local hospitals is detrimental to the efficiency of our hospitals - individuals will suffer! With the ever increasing population we need more services. Mr & Mrs D. A. H 22 Jun 2006 Please retain our hospitals Florence H 22 Jun 2006 It's not our wishes to close our hospitals M. H 22 Jun 2006 A gallstone operation waiting time 2 months Gloucester - Dilke 3 days. Our hospitals are necessary to our needs in this area Mr & Mrs A. J. R 22 Jun 2006 You will be old one day and need local treatment without having to travel miles. Mothers with young children also need local help. G. W 22 Jun 2006 It will be the older generation who are going to suffer in health, well being and quality of life. G. D 22 Jun 2006 Local hospital & day services are very important to our rural area. Why should they close to sustain city services in Gloucestershire, are city dwellers more important? I. C 22 Jun 2006 Lay off. You will be laid off. Ewart H 22 Jun 2006 Improved? facility needs to be in place before removing existing service. A.D. G 22 Jun 2006 Less management who have no contact with patients. Keep facilities local not 14 miles away. Consider the feelings of people who will vote. Mr & Mrs J. D 22 Jun 2006 Just prove you are not as ruthless as people make you out to be. Show them what a good Labour man can do for the people. Please save our local hospital we realy need it to save many lives. Retired lad Mrs J. H. B 22 Jun 2006 When you were first elected, I thought that you were going to be the saviour of our society. Instead, your actions have proved to be ruthless and unfeeling towards the working class. I will never vote Angela C 22 Jun 2006 Mr Blair, In 1996 my husband had a massive heart attack, his life was saved because we could get him to our local hospital quickly - if we had taken him the 26 miles to Gloucester he would not have survived Mrs G. M 22 Jun 2006 You are putting my childrens and other peoples lives at risk by shutting these hospitals - please re-think!! Claire T 22 Jun 2006 This action will do nothing for local people or services. It is an ill conceived piece of political nonsence. Mr & Mrs K. W 22 Jun 2006 If these local hospitals do close, I will feel really let down by Labour, you really have to listen Mr Blair, and put your house in order, if you don't you will lose my vote and lots more in the Fores T. T 22 Jun 2006 When I voted Labour, I did not think the day would come when our local hospitals would be at risk, if they do close I will never vote Labour again, you have let us down. Mrs N T 22 Jun 2006 Where has all the money gone that has been allocated to the NHS in recent years? Rev & Mrs C 22 Jun 2006 Please, Please, Please consider what you are doing, what will happen in the long run. It will create more stress and the possibility of unecessary deaths. We need our hospitals Angharrad M 22 Jun 2006 If they have the money to build a new hospital in the Forest why not put the money into the two we already have? They are our heritage. Gillian O 22 Jun 2006 Keep our local hospitals. 20 miles is too far to go for treatment. P. W 22 Jun 2006 No closures in our Forest, or else. Dr & Mrs W 22 Jun 2006 Stop taking our hospitals Leigh D 22 Jun 2006 Leave our hospitals alone. Give up and give in. Corie T 22 Jun 2006 Just leave us Foresters alone. Joyce P 22 Jun 2006 It will not work taking our local hospitals away from us. Gloucester hospital is already overcrowded and parking almost impossible. Why make it worse by closing the Dilke and Lydney. Mrs J. H 22 Jun 2006 Come and see for yourself and speak to the people who know. Get rid of management and administrators throughout the system. Janet L 22 Jun 2006 Hands off our hospitals Mr & Mrs W 22 Jun 2006 Hands off our hospitals! Edwin W 22 Jun 2006 Unprintable! Mr & Mrs W 22 Jun 2006 If these services are cut for whatever reason, the people of the Forest of Dean will be deprived of hospital/medical care. The nearest hospitals are too far away except in an emergency. Mary & Brian T 22 Jun 2006 Hands off our hospitals, we earned them. Helena M