DAVID DRURY, of Ford Valley, Dartmouth, writes:

I read with interest that Dartmouth Hospital may not now close, Chronicle, December 30.

Hooray! Someone has seen sense at last. The ‘maybe’ should read ‘not’ being closed.

It is paramount that we don’t lose our community hospital – we should be looking after our own community where we all live.

We should allow our brilliant GP service to be as involved as it is now and recruit more if need be.

We should not be sending our families to Totnes and beyond, where those on low incomes or without transport cannot visit.

People living in the Torbay area can visit their families and relations far easier than we can in Dartmouth. We are cut off by the river and after the ferries close at night, or due to bad weather, we cannot visit.

Going around Totnes is lengthy and costly. Without transport, it is impossible.

Dartmouth, with its ­geographical location, is ­difficult at best; that is why we should have a local hospital to make patients’ stay in hospital less traumatic than having to be moved to a strange location where visiting is difficult or impossible to some without transport.

During the Christmas period an incident took place where a single mum tried to get help for a serious infection. She phoned several services to get help, only to be told to go to Plymouth, Exeter or Newton Abbot. The young, single ­mother said a taxi would cost £90 and she did not have the money.

She was refused an ­ambulance, so travel was impossible.

After two days of this ­infection, in desperation she phoned me at 5.30am, crying and saying that she could have an appointment in Newton Abbot. She could not cope with the pain and found it hard to look after her two-year-old.

I took her to her appointment in Newton Abbot on Boxing Day because she could not get help any other way. Had she not got help that day, she was told, her life could have been in great danger.

That is why we need a ­hospital in Dartmouth for times like that. Had she gone to the local minor injury unit in Dartmouth over the holiday period she would have been seen and action would have been taken locally.

That is why myself and so many other people in our town are trying to save a lifeline to help not only our elderly, but in times of need help will be there for everyone.

This incident could so easily have been tragic if left longer. A minor injury unit where a GP could be called to access a given condition is vital.

I won’t comment on the report by the clinical commissioning group. Although it sounds good on paper, most of the report will take a lot of time to implement.

The only thing we need to be concerned about is our hospital not closing and the community mourning the loss of a loved one because of not being seen in time at a local MIU. These departments are a lifeline and I know in the past they have saved countless lives through the early detection of a ­condition.

The numbers game is being played without the concern of possible lives lost.

How much does a life cost? Not much apparently, with the Government cutting costs at the expense of losing community hospitals and the health of our nation in general.

Perhaps the Health Minister needs to live in Dartmouth or a rural area, where he is cutting costs on our health services, so he can see for himself the problems we face in a crisis.