YOU could not have missed the coverage of the drama and demands that are overtaking the NHS in recent weeks as the media has at every opportunity shown the unfolding life or death struggles that the staff are trying to avert every minute of the day.

As someone who recently witnessed this over a number of weeks following admission of my uncle into James Cook Hospital, in Middlesbrough, it is plain as the nose on your face that the system is broken and needs to be fixed. The cry to throw more money at it is not the total solution as the fundamental structures are in need of radical change.

These are some of the major issues that need to be addressed quickly if we are not going to spiral further down into more chaos.

1. Nationalise all private finance initiative contracts with minimum compensation, as was done with The Northern Rock.

2. Merge social and medical care and take it out of the remit of local councils and fund it directly.

3. Strip out over payment to temporary staff and remove the loan system and return the grants and encourage more training of UK staff. Also limit scales of pay to NHS rates plus six per cent maximum.

4. Build social half way accommodation in the vicinity of hospitals to free up clinical beds.

5. Adopt best practice followed by French and German systems which unlike ours are world class.

6. Ensure best prices are achieved for our medicines and prescribe effectively.

7. Remove clinical commissioning groups as they are currently working against the best for the patients and are more focused on cost savings.

At points during the treatment of my relative I was moved by the compassion shown to him in his final days, but that does not mean that the system is not working as well as it should or could.

Stop talking about the free health service because it is not – all tax payers are funding it – and we either need to pay more or expect less.

C Gallacher, Ukip Redcar