Eat Your Greens

THERE seems to be a bit of bother in Suffolk at the moment over paying for hospitals.

Actually, there seems to be a bit of bother all over the place over paying for hospitals.

Exactly why the good people who spend their working days (and, quite often, nights) making sure that our creaking old bodies keep working should be penalised for doing their best is a mystery to most of us, but if they spend an extra tuppence curing us they get fined for it. That really solves the problem!

Now some bright spark with a computer has decided that the wards at White Lodge need to be closed.

He or she (no, it must be a he, shes are much too sensible) has also worked out that the community hospital at Sudbury needs to be closed.

So where will all the ill and injured people from the Newmarket and Sudbury areas go now? Yes, the West Suffolk at Bury.

But they are short of money at Bury and are not allowed to recruit new staff. With all these extra people to treat they should need a lot of extra staff but the balance sheet says "no."

Never mind the new people moving into the area and the thousands of pounds they have paid over their lifetimes in tax and national insurance - if the balance sheet says "no," then no it must be.

Of course, you could always go to Addenbrooke's and pay through the nose for parking, but let's be realistic; Bury is small, friendly and more than competent at most things.

The only answer seems to be to follow Mum's advice: Eat your greens and pray you stay healthy.