HAVING attended the public meeting at Redditch Town Hall on Thursday, I was left feeling that, under the current management of the Worcestershire Acute NHS Hospitals Trust, the people of Redditch and Bromsgrove will still inevitably experience a severe reduction in health services - at best we will be faced with a choice between the lesser of any number of evils.

By threatening to close A&E, maternity, cancer care and ITU, maybe they think we'll be happy to settle for the loss of only three out of four.

The only thing we did not hear was any talk of cutbacks at Worcester, yet there seemed to be a reasonable consensus the Alex is the better performing of the two hospitals, by far.

There was talk about Redditch and Bromsgrove declaring ''UDI'' and breaking away from the acute trust.

However, it seems difficult to imagine how such a small trust could support the necessary managerial overhead to stand alone.

I suspect the current trust board knows this, which is why they were only too willing to suggest it.

Nevertheless, even if we cannot stand alone, why can't we join forces with another trust?

Redditch and Bromsgrove are geographically much closer to Birmingham than Worcester, noting that Bromsgrove extends north to the very borders of Birmingham at Wythall and Barnt Green.

Surely the Alex would be well suited as part of the University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, better known to us all as the Queen Elizabeth.

The Worcestershire trust board seems to have dismissed any opportunities for improved revenue and have focused attention on slashing services to save cash.

Even if our incorporation into the QE trust was to still result in a rationalisation of some facilities, at least with the QE we have a hospital that warrants respect and to which we have direct public transport links.

However, one can see a great deal of synergy between the two hospitals, which jointly could become the major health providers of South Birmingham, North Worcestershire and North West Warwickshire, requiring growth at the Alex, not cuts.

The Worcestershire trust has shown no loyalty to Redditch and Bromsgrove.

They are guilty of a complete betrayal of the people who they should be serving.

I think we should leave them to sort out their own debt mountain and funding problems and seek our future elsewhere.

GARY MASON

Rosehall Close

Oakenshaw