I WOULD like to agree with E D Hubble’s praise of Southampton General Hospital (November 11).

During the last two years I have been involved with the haematology department. For the past year a brand new sect-ion, C7 Haematology Day Unit, has been my second home with two visits per week, which can be exhausting when you are terminally ill.

The staff who work there, from the receptionist (whose efficien-cy is beyond belief) to the nurses and doctors (who are human an-gels) are in a class of their own. We know that all doctors and nurses should be kind and caring but these go above and beyond the call of duty and treat you like a member of their family or friend. Often the treatment can be unpleasant or even painful and can last several hours but the care and compassion of staff never waivers.

While we are considering thanks and praise let us not for-get the patient transport drivers. Although the system in which they work often leaves a lot to be desired (probably because of too many people in ivory towers, who haven’t a clue about what goes on at the ‘coal face’) the dri-vers themselves are always cheerful, kind and obliging, cop-ing with difficult patients and Southampton’s appalling roads and traffic for long hours.

Of course, things sometimes go wrong in such a huge hospital – and they receive too much publicity – but let us not forget the thousands of successful outcomes due to the care and kindness of overworked (and often unappreciated) staff.

NAME AND ADDRESS SUPPLIED.