"Thank goodness for the NHS"

My son woke up with abdominal pain on Saturday morning and within 12 hours had been admitted through the Urgent Treatment Centre and Ward T6 and had his appendix remained.

I work elsewhere in the health service and it was wonderful to see the system from the other side.

All the nurses, doctors and ancillary staff were compassionate and efficient.

The surgical team kept us fully informed.

I did a quick search on the internet and found that in the USA the AVERAGE cost of an appendicectomy is $13900.

I doubt that my son's treatment reached a fraction of that but of course for us it didn't matter because of the founding principle of the NHS being free at the point of delivery.

I am so thankful for the wonderful care that we received.

The almost nonexistent administration from the patient's side means that my son can just concentrate on getting well.

Thank you to UTC, Ward T6 and the emergency theatre team on duty on Saturday.