IN response to a letter "I Am Suspicious of NHS Surveys" (February 11), I wish to respond to the comments made on the process of public engagement launched by the NHS agencies in Bury, Rochdale, Oldham, North Manchester and Heywood and Middleton.

Currently the Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) in these towns, together with the Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, are asking local people for their views on what they think is important in the delivery of health services, both now and into the future. To provide a context for these views, information and case studies are provided to show how the NHS is changing and what this could mean for patients in years to come.

Leaflets providing information and a feedback form have been distributed widely to households across the towns and detailed public information pages have appeared in local papers, including the Bury Times.

The driving force for the whole of this process, which is in its very early stages, is to develop better quality health services for local people. The reality is that health services need to continually change and be updated to meet modern standards.

For example, there is an opportunity for more health services to be delivered closer to peoples homes thanks to new technology and medical advances. It is a challenge for health organisations to share this vision with the public who can only compare it with the services they have today. But to make assumptions at this early stage that any changes to services can only be detrimental to local people is not helpful to any dialogue.

We are entering an exciting phase within the NHS which will see significant new money to modernise local facilities and services. To accompany this, there is a national trend towards specialisation of hospital services to create centres of excellence to provide the best possible services for patients with more serious conditions.

However, before any decisions relating to changes in services are made, all views are welcome.

EVAN BOUCHER,

chief executive,

Bury Primary Care Trust.