I want to speak up for the dedicated and hard-working people who staff our hospitals.

Okay, hospitals aren't what they used to be but that's not the fault of the staff.

I suffer from Parkinson's disease and had to be taken into hospital during the May bank holiday. Having been admitted at 8pm

on the Saturday evening, it was 3am before I actually got a bed.

I hurtled down the dark tunnels in the old part of the hospital in my wheelchair, expertly manoeuvred by the young male porter, my husband racing to keep up. It must have looked like a scene from a Carry On film - even though I felt like hell I couldn't help laughing.

Although I was only in hospital for three days, I came out with a viral chest infection which took seven weeks and two lots of antibiotics to shift.

In spite of all this, I enjoyed the hospital food, always served with a smile. The nurses, doctors, care assistants and domestic staff couldn't have done a better job and I am grateful for the care and attention I received.

In the years to come, the NHS may find it increasingly hard to survive. Let's hope for all our sakes that it does.

-Sarah Brodie-Carpenter, Brighton