IN response to your article (LET, May 6) regarding 'whingeing nurses', I and many of my colleagues do not believe the nurses are whingeing but that they have justifiable concerns about the proposed plan to introduce a park and ride scheme between Queen's Park Hospital and Blackburn Royal Infirmary.

The plan has many potential problems and affects nurses more than any other members of staff at the hospital.

Without nurses the hospital could not function. They provide a 24-hour service, seven days a week, all year round. I think that it would be more appropriate that we gave more consideration to their needs and desires rather than insulting them in public.

Mr Nigel Robinson, whom I understand to have made these remarks, used to be a nurse. If we continue to ignore the needs of our nursing colleagues, I suspect many of them will follow his example and leave the profession.

The availability of adequate car parking space has nothing to do with the professionalism with which nurses approach their job and it is crazy to compare these two issues.

R J WATSON, Consultant Surgeon, Blackburn, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Health Care NHS Trust, Blackburn Infirmary, Blackburn.

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