MUM has lived with us for two-and- a-half years and my husband, Graham, took early retirement 18 months ago to be her full-time carer.

At the beginning of November we treated ourselves to a two-week holiday to recharge our batteries.

Mum went into respite but on our return she had deteriorated rapidly, her mobility was very limited and her speech very poor, she was in a daze all the time.

Life was very difficult but we persevered.

Three weeks ago mum had a funny do and was taken into Warrington Hospital, where she spent four days on a normal ward and where she was cared for extremely well.

But they soon realised she needed extra support so she was transferred to the Forget-me-not ward at the same hospital.

The NHS receives a lot of bad press, deservedly so at times, but I would like to give my heartfelt thanks and praise to the staff at Warrington Hospital as they have been fantastic.

They have treated mum with such care, compassion, dignity and respect, even when she has thrown water over them and assaulted them physically and verbally.

They have supported us in making the very difficult decision of where mum would be best cared for on discharge, helping to soothe some of the immense guilt we feel that our home can no longer meet her needs.

Moreover, with their care, her mobility has improved as has her speech. Christmas is a family time and we have been welcomed on the ward morning, noon and night but not to care for our mum but just to make more precious memories.

So even though I suspect no-one from Warrington Hospital will see this letter, I still felt I needed to say a big thank you to them and the NHS for progressing in their care of people with memory problems.

GRAHAM YOUNG
Lowton