I am sorry if the Primary Care Trust staff may have taken my recent letter as an attack on the services they provide. I was highlighting the failings of the acute Trust in discharging patients into a system that is already overstretched, the respondent ha

I am sorry if the Primary Care Trust staff may have taken my recent letter as an attack on the services they provide. I was highlighting the failings of the acute Trust in discharging patients into a system that is already overstretched, the respondent has highlighted this fact and identified an annihilation of district nurses owing to governmental pressure.

This must, therefore, impact upon the provision of patient care leading to systems failure ultimately causing harm to a patient or leading to the patient receiving care that is below an acceptable standard. The readmission rates are indeed a direct responsibility of the acute Trust due to the constant pressure on beds. The NHS as a whole has the duty to provide care that is seamless and person centred, however in the current environment this is impossible. I do not wish to be considered unprofessional in my approach. I comment out of duty to my community to highlight a problem.

VINCENT OLIVER